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REGINA, 

THE  GERMAN  CAPTIVE; 

OK, 

TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY. 


BY 

REV.  R.  WEISER. 


PHILADELPHIA: 


tlBd 


PREFACE. 


What  !  another  religious  novel  ?  No;  not  so  fast. 
The  profound  Goethe  says,  concerning  his  Wilhelm 
Meister,  that  it  is  no  novel,  nor  is  it  a  myth,  nor 
an  allegory.  So  we  can  say  of  Regina:  It  is  no 
novel,  nor  is  it  a  myth,  nor  an  allegory,  but  it  is  a 
true  narrative  of  well-authenticated  facts, — somewhat 
enlarged  and  embellished,  we  admit; — but,  neverthe- 
less, all  the  main  facts  are  true,  and  recorded  by 
Rev.  Dr.  H.  Melchior  Muhlenberg,  as  you  can  see 
in  the  "JHaUtsche  Nachrichten"  (page  1029,)  where 
he  informs  us  that  Regina  and  her  mother  called  to 
see  him  at  his  house  in  New  Providence,  in  1765, 
and  narrated  all  the  circumstances  of  the  murders 
and  captivity  just  as  we  have  recorded  them.  Mr. 
Muhlenberg  did  not  record  all  the  circumstances  in 
the  case.  Those  who  were  acquainted  with  Mrs. 
Hartman  and  her  daughter,  and  who  often  saw 

1*  5 


6 


PREFACE. 


her,  and  had  more  time  to  converse  with  her  than 
Dr.  Muhlenberg,  would  of  course  learn  more  of  the 
particulars.  My  grandmother,  Mrs.  Esther  Weiser, 
— a  daughter  of  Col.  Jacob  Sevan,  and  daughter-in- 
law  to  Conrad  Weiser,  was  born  in  1734,  and  died 
in  Womelsdorf,  Berks  county,  Pa.,  in  1820,  at  the 
advanced  age  of  eighty-six, — was  well  acquainted 
with  Mrs.  Hartman  and  Regina ;  and,  when  I  was  a 
little  boy,  I  often  heard  her  tell  the  story  of  the  Hart- 
man  massacre  and  the  captivity  of  Regina.  And  the 
recital  of  those  terrible  scenes  made  such  an  im- 
pression on  my  mind  that  the  lapse  of  near  forty 
years  has  not  erased  them.  When,  therefore,  about 
ten  years  ago,  the  "Hallische  Nachriehten"  fell  into 
my  hands,  and  when  I  read  the  thrilling  narrative 
of  Hartman's  massacre  and  Regina's  captivity,  it 
refreshed  my  memory,  and  I  saw  that  it  was  the 
same  thrilling  story  I  heard  from  my  grandmother ; 
and  I  at  once  made  up  my  mind  that,  as  soon  as  I 
could  command  the  time,  I  would  take  Mr.  Muh- 
lenberg's narrative  and  the  skeleton  of  my  own 
recollection,  and  I  would  at  least  try  to  fill  it  out 
into  the  .  form  and  proportions  of  a  little  book. 
This  I  have  now  done ;  and  how  well  I  have  sue* 


PREFACE. 


7 


ceeded  the  reader  must  judge.  That  I  have  some- 
times drawn  upon  my  imagination  must  be  ad- 
mitted; for  how  else,  in  the  absence  of  documentary 
evidence,  could  I  bring  the  various  links  of  the 
chain  together  ? 

This  book  is  prepared  for  our  Lutheran  Sabbath- 
schools.  We  have  a  precious  treasure  in  the  his- 
tory of  our  own  church,  and  we  should  make 
use  of  it.  God  has  had  his  martyrs,  and  suf- 
fering ones,  and  holy  little  ones,  in  our  beloved 
Lutheran  Zion,  and  we  should  tell  the  tales  of  their 
sufferings  and  sorrows  to  our  children;  and  this  we 
have  attempted  to  do  in  the  following  pages.  More 
than  this  : — the  American  Indians  are  fast  passing 
away,  and  our  children  should  know  something 
about  their  cruelties,  and  thus  see  why  Grod  has 
permitted  them  to  be  banished  from  their  native 
land. 

"We  have  interwoven  many  Indian  customs  and 
—ages  with  our  narrative.  From  this  narrative  we 
learn,  as  Dr.  Muhlenberg  says,  in  closing  his  ac- 
count of  Regina,  the  importance  of  early  religious 
instruction.  Here  was  a  child  cast  off  from  all  re- 
ligious influences,  among  wicked  savages ;  and  yet 


8 


PREFACE. 


the  seeds  of  piety  sown  in  her  young  breast  con- 
tinued, even  under  the  most  unfavorable  circum- 
stances, to  grow.  "If,"  says  Muhlenberg,  "  Luther 
were  yet  in  this  world,  and  were  to  hear  that  a  child 
from  Reutlingen — a  free  city  which  stood  so  firmly 
by  the  Augsburg  Confession  in  1530 — had  been 
kept,  by  God's  pure  word,  in  a  remote  wilderness, 
in  a  state  of  grace,  he  would  bless  and  thank  God 
for  it,  and  with  comfort  and  joy  would  he  once 
more  say — 

"  Das  Wort  sie  sollen  lassen  stahn, 
Und  keinen  Dank  darzu  haben." 

This  book  is  sent  forth  to  teach  parents  as  well  as 
children  how  to  live  and  die  happy.  May  the  bless- 
ing of  God  rest  upon  it ! 

R.  Weiser. 


Fort  Des  Moines,  Iowa, 
July  1,  1856. 


CONTENTS. 


PAGE 


Preface   5 

CHAPTER  I. 

Introduction   13 

CHAPTER  LL 

Settlement  in  America   32 

CHAPTER  DX 
Life  in  the  New  Home   54 

CHAPTER  IV. 

The  Dreadful  Calamity  that  fell  upon  the  Hartman 

Family   72 

9 


10 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  V. 

PAGE 

The  Widow  and  her  only  Son — All  that  is  left  of  a  once 
Happy  and  Prosperous  Family   109 

CHAPTER  VL 

The  Captivity — In  which  we  have  an  Account  of  what 
befell  the  poor  Girls,  Barbara  and  Regina,  and  the 
Hardships  the  Captives  endured  among  the  Indians   119 

CHAPTER  VII. 

Regina  and  Susan  in  Captivity — Their  Hardships  —  The 
Cruelty  of  the  Old  Squaw — How  they  spent  their  Time 
— Their  Affection  for  each  other   131 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

The  Home  of  a  Desolate  Widow — Her  Thoughts — Her 
Hopes   140 

CHAPTER  IX. 

Regina  —  Her  Presentiments  of  Deliverance  —  The  In- 
dian War — The  Triumphs  of  the  English  Arms — The 
Battles — The  Capitulation — A  large  number  of  White 
Captive  Children  delivered  to  Colonel  Boquet — Regina 
among  the  number   152 


CONTENTS. 


11 


CHAPTER  X. 

PAOl 

The  Mother — Home  of  the  Lonely  Widow  in  the  Moun- 
tains— The  strong  and  undying  Affection  of  a  fond 
Mother — Her  Thoughts  of  the  Loved,  the  Lost,  the  Ab- 
sent, and  the  Dead   170 


CHAPTER  XI. 

The  Daughter — The  Widow's  Toils  and  Labors  Rewarded 
— The  Lost  Found — The  Means  of  the  Discovery — A 
Thrilling  Scene — Regina  in  her  fond  Mother's  Arms — 
Happy,  Happy  Mother!   185 


CHAPTER  XII. 

Regina  at  Home  Again  —  Her  Habits  —  Her  Awkward 
Predicament  —  How  she  learned  German  the  Second 
Time — Her  Imperfect  Religion — Her  True  Conversion 
to  God — Her  Connection  with  the  Lutheran  Church — 
Mrs.  Hartman's  Cup  of  Joy  full — Heaven  upon  Earth 
— Religion  the  best  of  all   192 


CHAPTER  XIII. 


The  Widow's  Home  made  Happy — Christian  and  Susan 
— Their  Conversion — Connection  with  the  Church  — 
Courtship  and  Marriage   225 


12 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

PAOl 

Regina  and  her  Mother — Piety  of  Mrs.  Hartman — Her 
Sickness — Regina's  ceaseless  Attention  to  her  afflicted 
Mother — Her  Happiness  in  Prospect  of  Heaven — Her 
Happy  Death   236 

CHAPTER  XV. 
Regina— Her  Character— Her  Piety— Her  End   249 


REGINA, 

THE  GERMAN  CAPTIVE. 


CHAPTER  L 

INTRODUCTION. 

In  a  beautiful  and  romantic  country  in 
the  kingdom  of  Wurtemburg,  on  a  small 
stream  called  the  Echetz,  which  empties  its 
sparkling  waters  into  the  Neckar,  lies  the 
old  and  famous  city  of  Reutlingen.  This 
city  was  famous  already  during  the  wars  of 
Julius  Caesar,  but  became  more  so  during 
the  storms  and  convulsions  of  the  Reforma- 
tion. It  was  one  of  the  fourteen  imperial 
cities  which  stood  by  the  Augsburg  Confes- 
sion, and  solemnly  protested  against  the 
iniquitous  decrees  of  the  second  Diet  of 

2  13 


14 


regina;  or, 


Spires.  Hence  arose  the  name  Protest- 
ants,— an  honorable  appellation,  which  is 
now  given  to  all  those  Christians  who  re- 
nounce the  errors  and  superstitions  of  the 
Roman  Communion.  This  city  justly 
prides  itself,  not  only  in  having  successfully 
resisted  Julius  Csesar  and  all  the  mighty 
legions  of  ancient  Rome,  but  also  in  hav- 
ing withstood  all  those  savage  hordes  of 
northern  barbarians  who  from  time  to  time 
overran  nearly  all  Europe.  And  even  at 
this  day  may  be  seen  an  ancient  battering- 
ram  in  the  old  town-hall  of  Reutlingen, 
which  is  said  to  have  been  captured  in  the 
Roman  wars  nearly  nineteen  centuries  ago ! 
Reutlingen  is  romantically  located  in  a 
deep  valley  among  the  spurs  of  the  mighty 
Alps — the  Black  Forest  on  the  east,  and 
other  high  ridges  to  the  west.  Near  this 
beautiful  city,  in  an  ancient  farm-house,  in 
1710,  John  Hartman  was  born,  on  the  20th 
of  June.  He  was  the  younger  of  two  sons ; 
his  parents  were  pious,  and  quite  intelligent 
for  people  in  their  circumstances.  He  was 
sent  to  school  when  five  years  old,  and 
before  lie  was  ten  he  had  committed  to 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  15 

memory  nearly  the  whole  Lutheran  Cate- 
chism. There  wras  nothing  remarkable  in 
his  history.  He  was  confirmed  at  the  proper 
time,  and  ever  after  led  a  life  of  piety.  He 
worked  on  the  little  farm  of  his  father. 
Time  passed  on:  the  father  died  in  1727. 
In  1736,  John  Hartman  became  acquainted 
with  a  young  lady  whose  mother  lived  in 
Eeutlingen;  her  name  was  Magdalena 
Swartz,  and  after  a  year's  courtship  he  mar- 
ried her.  They  lived  happily  together  for 
a  number  of  years  until  they  had  a  family 
of  children.  The  little  farm  that  had  sup- 
ported John  Hartman's  father  was  found 
too  small  to  support  two  families  with  com 
fort. 

John  Hartman  w7as  industrious  and  fru- 
gal: he  rose  early  and  labored  hard,  but 
could  with  great  difficulty  pay  his  heavy 
taxes  and  feed  and  clothe  his  increasing 
family.  He  was  often  discouraged,  and 
would  sit  down  in  the  house,  when  he  was 
done  with  his  w^ork,  and  meditate  upon  his 
hard  lot  in  sadness  and  sorrow.  Still,  as  a 
Christian,  he  tried  to  bear  up  under  his 
fate.    It  was  his  duty,  he  knew,  to  be  con- 


16 


regina;  or, 


tented  with  such  things  as  he  had,  and  he 
dare  not  murmur  against  the  wise  dispensa- 
tions of  Providence.  But  how  could  he 
help  it,  when  he  saw  others,  who  were  no 
better  than  himself,  and  with  less  effort,  in 
much  better  circumstances  ? 

He  had  often  heard  of  America;  he  had 
a  maternal  uncle  who  had  gone  to  America, 
and  had  settled  in  Pennsylvania;  he  re- 
collected that  his  father  had  often  received 
letters  from  this  uncle — he  would  hunt  them 
up  and  read  them  again.  He  could  only 
find  one,  the  rest  were  mislaid  or  destroyed, 
but  that  one  letter  was  sufficient  to  fire  his 
heart  with  a  desire  for  the  new  world.  "We 
here  furnish  a  literal  translation  of  this  in- 
teresting letter.    Here  it  is : — 

"Heidleberg  Township,  Berks  Co.,  Pennsylvania, 
June  17th,  1726,  North  America. 

u  To  George  Hartman,  near  Reutlingen,  Kingdom  of  Wurtem- 
burg,  Germany. 

<  '  Dear  B rother-in-l aw  : — This  i  s  to  inform 
you  that  we  are  all  well,  and  well  pleased 
with  America.  We  live  in  a  good  land, 
where  every  thing  is  plenty,  and  we  have 
schools  and  churches.    The  land  is  good 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  17 


and  very  cheap;  you  can  get  as  much  as 
you  want  by  clearing  it.  Oh,  I  have  often 
wished  you  were  here  with  your  family. 
You  could  do  well,  and  live  just  like  a  lord. 
Sell  your  little  piece  of  land,  and  if  you 
only  get  enough  to  bring  you  to  Phila- 
delphia, I  will  bring  you  from  there  up  to 
our  place,  which  is  about  eighty  miles. 
Here  you  can  raise  wheat,  and  rye,  and 
barley,  and  potatoes.  We  have  apples,  and 
peaches,  and  plums,  and  other  fruit.  We 
raise  hogs,  and  cattle,  and  sheep,  and  chick- 
ens, and  have  plenty  of  meat  the  year  round. 
We  live  under  the  King  of  England,  but  we 
are  not  burdened  with  taxes  as  you  are. 
Our  land  is  very  fertile,  and  easily  culti- 
vated. I  hope  you  will  come  to  this  '  pro- 
mised land.'  Philadelphia  is  the  principal 
town  in  the  province  of  Pennsylvania,  and 
Eeading  is  the  principal  town  in  our  Berks 
county.  We  live  about  four  German  miles 
from  Reading.  If  you  write,  direct  your 
letter  to  me  at  Heidleberg  Township,  Berk3 
county,  Pennsylvania,  North  America. 
"  Yours  in  brotherly  love, 

44  Frederick  Sch-cener." 

2*  - 


18 


EEGINA  ;  OR, 


This  letter  made  a  deep  impression  on  his 
mind.  He  had  heard  of  America  before, 
but  never  as  a  father.  This  was  the  country 
for  him.  His  mind  was  made  up  at  once : 
he  would  leave  the  land  of  his  birth,  and 
seek  a  home  in  the  new  world.  No  sooner 
had  he  made  the  firm  resolve  than  he  felt  a 
heavy  load  removed  from  his  heart.  John 
Hartman  was  not  a  man  of  indecision ;  he 
was  firm  and  resolute;  he  had  an  iron  will, 
and  when  he  made  up  his  mind  to  do  any 
thing,  he  would  do  it.  One  Saturday  after- 
noon he  knew  the  schoolmaster  would  be  at 
leisure;  he  went  to  him  to  ask  him  about 
America;  he  knew  nothing  about  it,  nor 
where  it  lay,  nor  how  to  get  there.  The 
schoolmaster  answered  all  his  questions,  and 
showed  him  a  map  of  North  America,  and 
pointed  out  the  province  of  Pennsylvania, 
and  informed  him  how  he  would  get  there. 
He  told  him  he  must  cross  the  Black  Forest 
and  go  to  Strasburg,  which  is  on  the  Rhine, 
and  there  take  a  boat  and  go  down  the 
Rhine  to  Amsterdam  in  Holland,  and  there 
he  would  find  ships  that  would  carry  him 
across  the  Atlantic  ocean  to  Philadelphia. 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY. 


19 


The  schoolmaster  encouraged  him  to  go. 
This  was  all  calculated  to  strengthen  Hart- 
man's  resolution.  He  returned  to  his  home 
with  his  heart  brimfull  of  America.  Yes, 
he  would  go.  "  Come  what  may,"  he  said  to 
himself,  "I  will  go  to  America."  Bat  how 
would  his  wife  like  to  go  ?  He  had  never 
said  any  thing  to  her  about  it ;  he  would  go 
right  home  and  tell  her.  She  would,  no 
doubt,  agree  to  it  at  once.  When  he  came 
home  he  looked  so  cheerful  and  happy,  that 
the  eye  of  affection  at  once  saw  that  there 
was  something  unusual  in  his  mind.  "  Why, 
John,  what  makes  you  look  so  pleasant?" 
"Come,  Magdalena,  sit  down  here,  and  I 
will  tell  you."  She  sat  down  on  a  stool, 
and  when  John  had  lit  his  pipe,  he  informed 
her  of  his  determination.  44  Well,  John,  it 
is  hard  to  leave  one's  country,  and  the 
graves  of  our  pious  dead,  and  our  dear 
church ;  but  if  you  think  it  best,  I  will  not 
oppose  you,  but  will  cheerfully  follow  you 
to  the  end  of  the  world  !"  John  Hartman 
was  not  the  man  that  could  remain  unmoved 
when  he  heard  this.  His  heart  swelled 
with  emotion,  and  his  eyes  were  filled  with 


20 


REG1NA  ;  OR, 


tears,  as  lie  tried  to  say,  "God  bless  you, 
dear,  faithful  wife !" 

Their  arrangements  were  soon  made: 
their  slender  effects  were  disposed  of,  the 
papers  obtained,  and  soon  they  were  on 
their  way  to  Strasburg.  One  of  their  neigh- 
bors hauled  them  over  the  Black  Forest, 
and  they  had  a  pleasant  journey  to  the 
Rhine.  At  Strasburg  they  took  a  large 
boat  with  a  number  of  other  German  emi- 
grants, and  arrived  safely  at  Amsterdam  in 
about  two  weeks.  Here  they  found  a  ship 
ready  to  sail  in  a  few  days  for  Philadelphia. 
In  about  a  week,  the  good  ship  "New 
World"  weighed  her  anchor,  and  spread  her 
sails  to  the  winds,  and  soon  plowed  her  way 
through  the  blue  waters  of  the  ocean.  The 
accommodations  were  good,  and,  although 
the  passage  was  tedious,  being  sixty-four 
days  on  sea,  yet  it  was  prosperous.  They 
had  some  rough  weather — the  winds  blew 
an  awful  tempest,  and  the  waves  ran  moun- 
tain high,  and  the  passengers  were  much 
alarmed;  yet  the  noble  ship  outrode  the 
storm,  and  brought  them  in  safety  to  their 
desired  haven.    Oh,  how  great  was  their 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  21 

joy  when  the  land  of  the  New  World  was 
first  seen!  John  Hartman  and  his  wife 
thanked  God  for  their  safe  passage.  They 
arrived  in  Philadelphia  on  the  twentieth  of 
June,  1744. 

The  weather  was  beautiful,  and  although 
the  city  was  then  small  compared  with  the 
present  time,  yet  the  country  round  about 
it  was  more  beautiful.  Nature  was  then 
seen  on  the  banks  of  the  noble  rivers  that 
flow  through  the  city,  in  all  her  pristine 
glory  and  loveliness.  John  Hartman  had 
money  enough  to  pay  his  passage,  and  had 
even  enough  left  to  carry  him  to  the  country, 
and  start  him  on  a  farm.  But,  alas !  this  was 
not  the  case  with  a  number  of  those  who 
had  come  across  the  ocean  with  him.  They 
were  poor,  and  had  to  become  what  was 
then  called  "  Bedemptionists that  is,  they 
had  to  be  sold  into  servitude  to  pay  the  ex- 
penses of  their  transportation  to  this  country. 
This  was  hard:  the  father  was  sometimes 
sold  to  one  man,  the  mother  to  another,  and 
the  children  perhaps  to  another,  and  thus 
the  family  was  altogether  and  often  forever 
broken  up.    On  a  certain  day,  a  kind  of  an 


22 


regina;  or, 


auction  was  made,  for  the  sale  of  these  poor 
white  slaves,  and  the  highest  bidder  took 
either  the  father,  or  mother,  or  some  of  the 
children,  and  carried  them  off  to  places 
where  they  would  perhaps  never  see  their 
relatives  again.  I  recollect,  when  a  boy,  of 
seeing  some  of  those  Kedemptionists,  who 
had  not  yet  served  out  their  time ;  and  yet, 
strange  to  say,  even  this  cruel  system  had 
its  advantages,  and  the  German  character, 
by  its  own  innate  energy,  rose  above  the 
degradation  which  it  fastened  upon  it,  and 
many  of  the  wealthiest  and  most  respectable 
families  in  Penns}dvania  and  Delaware  are 
the  descendants  of  these  Redemptionists,  or, 
as  they  were  sometimes  also  called,  Re- 
demptioners.  I  was  personally  acquainted 
with  one  in  my  youth,  who  was  sold,  when 
he  was  seven  years  old,  for  fourteen  years. 
Such  was  his  energy  and  industry,  that  when 
he  had  been  free  two  years,  he  rented  his 
master's  mill,  two  years  afterward  he  married 
his  master's  only  daughter,  and,  in  1818,  he 
was  the  most  wealthy  and  enterprising  man 
in  the  county  where  he  lived. 
In  order  to  give  the  reader  of  these  pages 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  23 

a  correct  idea  of  this  system,  I  will  here 
translate  an  article  from  the  "Hallische 
ISTachrichten,"  or  the  Annals  of  Halle,  a 
work  which  is  highly  esteemed  in  the  Luthe- 
ran church,  as  the  only  hook  that  contains 
any  thing  like  an  authentic  history  of  the 
planting  and  training  of  the  Lutheran 
church  in  America.  This  work  is  mostly 
from  the  able  pen  of  Rev.  Henry  Melchior 
Muhlenberg,  D.D.,  who  is  justly  looked  upon 
as  the  Apostolic  Father  of  the  American 
Lutheran  church.  The  article  here  given 
is  from  his  prolific  pen.  It  is  found  in  a 
note  on  page  997.  It  would  seem  that  the 
men  who  were  engaged  in  the  nefarious 
business  of  coaxing  the  poor  German  emi- 
grants into  this  voluntary  servitude,  were  a 
base  and  unprincipled  set  of  scoundrels,  and 
wrere  called  Neulanders,  or  Newlanders. 
Dr.  Muhlenberg  says,  "I  dare  not  omit  the 
duty  imposed  upon  me  at  this  place,  to  make 
some  remarks  concerning  the  ISTewlanders, 
and  to  warn  our  German  countrymen 
against  them.  I  do  not  now  speak  of  those 
persons  who  go  back  to  Germany  for  their 
inheritance,  or  to  collect  funds  for  others 


24 


regina;  or, 


who  reside  here,  and  who  sometimes  lay 
the  funds  thus  collected  out  for  merchandise, 
which  they  dispose  of  in  our  markets.  This 
is  a  lawful  business,  with  which  I  find  no 
fault.  But  when  I  speak  of  Newlanders,  I 
mean  those  who  are  too  lazy  to  work,  and 
whose  object  in  going  to  Germany  is  not 
only  to  collect  funds,  but  to  entice,  by  various 
dishonorable  means,  multitudes  of  poor  Ger- 
mans to  leave  their  country  and  come  to 
this  new  world.  These  Kewlanders  make 
themselves  acquainted  with  the  merchants 
in  Holland;  these  merchants  give  them  a 
free  passage,  and  a  douceur,  or  bribe,  for 
each  family  or  individual  they  can  entice 
into  the  hands  of  those  merchants.  In  order 
that  they  may  accomplish  their  ends,  they 
use  all  kinds  of  dishonorable  and  crafty 
means.  They  are  accustomed  to  dress  in 
costly  attire,  display  their  rich  jewelry,  and 
try  to  leave  the  impression  that  they  are 
very  rich,  in  order  to  stimulate  the  cupidity 
of  the  poor  Germans,  and  to  make  them 
the  more  desirous  to  remove  to  such  a  lucky 
and  happy  country.  They  make  such  extra- 
ordinary representations  of  the  country,  that 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  25 

one  is  almost  induced  to  believe  that  all  the 
country  was  nothing  but  elysian  fields,  that 
sow  themselves  without  labor  or  toil;  that 
the  mountains  were  all  made  of  gold  and 
silver;  and  that  nothing  but  milk  and 
honey  flowed  from  all  its  springs.  They 
would  make  one  believe  that  he  who  goes 
to  America  as  a  servant  shall  become  a  lord, 
the  maid  shall  become  a  lady,  the  farmer 
shall  become  a  nobleman,  the  citizen  and 
mechanic  a  baron.  Here  in  America,  ac- 
cording to  their  representations,  the  govern- 
ment is  made  and  unmade  by  the  people, 
just  as  it  may  suit  them.  Now,  as  every 
person  has  a  natural  desire  to  improve  his 
condition,  who  wTould  not  cheerfully  go  to 
such  a  country  ?  In  Europe,  the  land  is  over- 
burdened with  inhabitants,  and  especially  as 
the  labor  of  the  poorer  classes  is  not  in  de- 
mand, and  the  taxes  and  the  (Frolindienst) 
service  which  the  peasant  owes  to  the  land- 
holder are  intolerable;  is  it  any  wonder 
that  so  many  are  ready  to  go  to  America  ? 
Families  "are  broken  up,  their  little  worldly 
possessions  are  converted  into  money,  their 
debts  are  paid,  and  if  any  thing  should  be 

3 


26 


regina;  or, 


left,  it  is  put  into  the  hands  of  the  New* 
landers,  and  the  journey  is  soon  commenced. 
Next  comes  the  journey  on  the  Rhine. 
From  Holland,  the  emigrant  cannot  always 
start  across  the  ocean  when  he  pleases,  and, 
therefore,  he  accepts  money  in  advance  from 
the  merchants,  or  ship-owners.  Then  comes 
the  enormous  expense  of  the  sea-voyage, 
and  a  head-tax  for  each  individual.  Before 
they  leave  Holland,  they  must  sign  an  agree- 
ment drawn  up  in  English,  (which,  of  course, 
they  do  not  understand,)  the  Newlanders 
meanwhile  assuring  them  that  it  is  all  right, 
and  that  they  would  not,  of  course,  see  their 
countrymen  imposed  upon.  The  more  pas- 
sengers can  be  crowded  into  the  ship,  the 
better  it  is  for  the  captain  and  owner,  pro- 
vided they  do  not  die  on  the  way.  The  ship 
is  kept  clean  and  pure,  and  every  means  is 
used  to  bring  the  chattel  into  market  in  a 
sound  and  healthy  state.  Formerly,  they 
were  not  so  careful  to  preserve  life,  but 
permitted  those  to  die  who  could  not  live ! 

"  When  parents  happened  to  die  on  the  pas- 
sage, the  captain  and  Newlanders  usually 
acted  as  protectors  of  the  children ;  the  chests 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  27 

of  the  departed  were  opened,  and  the  pro- 
perty taken  into  possession  by  those  kind- 
hearted  scoundrels,  and,  when  the  ship 
reached  the  port,  the  poor  children  were 
sold  to  pay  their  own  and  the  passage  of 
their  deceased  parents;  and,  if  there  were 
any  quite  young  ones  among  them,  they 
were  given  away,  and  all  the  property  re- 
maining was  appropriated  to  themselves  by 
those  pious  guardians  of  the  poor  children, 
as  fees  for  their  guardianship. 

"Such  heaven-crying  enormities  called 
loudly  for  redress,  and  gave  occasion  to  a 
number  of  the  well-disposed  German  citi- 
zens of  Philadelphia  to  unite  themselves 
into  an  organization,  called  the  'German 
Society,'  whose  object  was  to  aid  and  assist 
the  poor  emigrants,  and  to  see  that  justice 
wras  done  to  those  unfortunate  ones. 

"  As  soon  as  the  ship  is  freighted  in  Hol- 
land, the  wearisome  and  dangerous  voyage 
commences.  The  hardships  and  trials  of  a 
lengthened  sea-voyage,  occasioned  by  sick- 
ness, and  storms,  and  other  causes,  are  very 
much  ameliorated  with  the  hope  of  soon 
reaching  the  New  World,  and  in  that  new 


28 


REGINA  ;  OR, 


world  a  perfect  paradise.  At  length,  one 
ship  after  the  other  arrives  at  the  port  of 
Philadelphia,  perhaps  when  the  cold  winter 
is  at  the  door.  The  merchants  in  this  city 
receive  a  list  of  the  emigrants,  and  the  arti- 
cles of  agreement  which  each  one  signed  in 
Holland;  and  then  follows  the  account  of 
the  journey  down  the  Rhine,  and  the  money 
advanced  by  the  Newlanders,  the  amount 
of  freight,  and  the  provisions  they  received. 
The  passage  for  a  grown  person  was  for- 
merly from  six  to  eight  Louis  d'or;  now, 
however,  it  amounts  to  from  sixteen  to 
seventeen  Louis  d'or,  (which  is  $74.48.)  Be- 
fore the  ship  can  enter  the  port,  according 
to  our  laws,  all  persons  must  be  carefully 
examined,  to  learn  whether  they  are  free 
from  contagious  diseases.  Then  the  emi- 
grants are  marched  in  procession  to  the 
custom-house,  where  they  must  take  the 
oath  of  allegiance  to  the  King  of  England; 
then  they  are  marched  back  to  the  ship. 
Then  it  is  published  in  the  papers,  that 
there  are  so  many  Germans  to  be  sold  for 
their  passage.  Those  who  have  the  means 
purchase  themselves;  those  who  have  not 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  29 


the  means,  or  no  friends  to  advance  funds, 
are  sold.  The  ship  is  the  market- house. 
The  purchasers  go  to  the  ship,  and  select 
such  as  they  want,  make  a  bargain  for  so 
many  years,  go  to  the  agent,  pay  down  the 
money,  and  have  an  indenture  made,  which 
transfers  the  ownership  for  the  time  speci- 
fied. The  young  people,  of  both  sexes,  are 
generally  sold  first,  and  get  a  good  or  bad 
situation  according  to  the  disposition  of  the 
master,  or  as  God  in  his  providence  permits. 
It  has  often  been  observed  that  those  children 
who  were  disobedient  to  their  parents,  and  left 
them  without  their  consent,  generally  fell  into 
such  hands  where  they  received  the  reward  of 
their  evil  ways. 

"Old  and  infirm  persons  no  one  wants,  for 
such  are  already  too  numerous.  But  if  they 
have  children,  the  children  are  sold  for  the 
passage  of  their  infirm  parents,  and,  of 
course,  are  sold  higher,  because  they  must 
serve  so  much  longer.  Thus,  the  children 
are  scattered  far  and  wide,  among  people  of 
different  languages,  where  they  will  forget 
their  native  tongue,  and  perhaps  never  see 
each  other  or  their  parents  again.    The  old 

3* 


■30 


regina;  or, 


persons  are  then  permitted  to  leave  the  ship ; 
they  come  into  the  city  poor,  spiritless,  and 
naked,  and  look  as  though  they  had  come 
from  their  graves ;  they  then  go  about 
among  the  Germans  and  beg  their  bread: 
for  the  English  people  are  afraid  of  catching 
infectious  diseases  from  them,  and  do  not 
admit  them  into  their  houses.  These  things 
are  enough  to  cause  one's  heart  to  bleed. 
We  see  these  poor  human  beings,  who  have 
come  from  a  land  of  gospel  grace,  weeping 
and  mourning,  and  wringing  their  hands  in 
anguish  !  They  curse,  in  the  bitterest  lan- 
guage, all  the  JSTewlanders  and  merchants 
who  so  grossly  deceived  them.  But,  alas! 
those  who  are  absent  do  not  hear  thos« 
curses  and  lamentations ;  and  the  so-called 
Newlanders  only  laugh  at  their  calamities, 
and  give  them  the  comfort  which  the  priests 
gave  to  Judas  Iscariot : —  '  What  is  that  to 
us?  see  thou  to  it.'  The  very  children 
themselves,  when  they  find  that  they  must 
serve  so  much  longer  for  their  parents,  often 
hate  and  even  despise  them." 

Such  is  the  picture  drawn  of  this  nefari- 
ous system  of  white  slavery  by  Dr.  Muhlen- 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  HI 

berg,  and  such  a  scene  was  acted  on  the 
good  ship  "New  World"  when  she  arrived 
at  Philadelphia.  As  stated  before,  John 
Hartman  had  the  means  to  pay  his  own 
way;  and  the  benevolence  of  his  heart 
even  prompted  him  to  assist  several  of  his 
countrymen,  so  that  they  were  not  sold  into 
bondage.  I  thought  it  important  to  say 
thus  much  about  the  Redemptionists,  so 
that  the  children  of  our  Lutheran  church 
may  know  something  about  the  hardships 
and  trials  our  forefathers  had  to  encounter 
when  they  first  came  to  this  Western  world. 
Dr.  Muhleixberg  frequently  refers  to  those 
wicked  and  unprincipled  men  called  the 
Newlanders.  But  it  was  fortunate  for  John 
Hartman  that  he  was  abl*e  to  keep  himself 
out  of  their  clutches. 


regina;  or, 


CHAPTER  H. 

John  Hartman  spent  several  weeks  iu 
Philadelphia,  in  the  house  of  a  German, 
until  he  could  make  inquiries  as  to  the 
most  advantageous  location.  He  finally 
made  up  his  mind  to  go  to  Reading,  and 
from  there  to  some  point  nea'r  the  Blue 
Mountains.  On  Sabbath  he  went  to  church, 
and  heard  a  most  excellent  sermon  from 
Rev.  Dr.  H.  M.  Muhlenberg,  in  St.  Michael's 
Church,  which  was  then  new,  but  is  now 
one  of  the  oldest  churches  in  the  land.  He 
and  his  pious  wife  were  anxious  to  con- 
verse with  this  good  man  ;  so  they  waited  in 
the  front  part  of  the  church  until  he  came 
out,  when  they  introduced  themselves  to 
him.  He  received  them  very  kindly,  and 
inquired  about  them,  and  gave  them  good 
advice.  The  short  interview  they  had  with 
him  left  a  very  favorable  impression  on 
their  minds. 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  33 


They  had  four  children,  all  born  in  Ger- 
many,— viz.:  George,  so  called  after  his  pater- 
nal grandfather;  Barbara,  Regina,  (which 
in  Latin  means  a  queen,)  wThich  was  a  fancy 
name,  and  Christian,  the  youngest,  who  was 
so  called  after  the  excellent  old  pastor  of 
Reutlingen.  These  children  were  all  dedi- 
cated to  God  in  holy  baptism,  according  to 
the  usages  of  the  Lutheran  church.  Thus, 
you  see,  Hartman  had  a  heavy  charge  upon 
him  ;  and,  like  a  true  Christian  man,  he  felt 
all  the  weight  of  his  responsibility.  These 
children  were  his  treasures,  and  he  felt  that 
they  were  immortal  and  accountable  beings 
like  himself ;  and  he  and  his  excellent  wife 
prayed  for  their  children  and  always  set 
them  a  good  and  pious  example. 

They  left  Philadelphia  about  the  last  of 
June,  with  a  farmer  who  had  taken  wheat 
to  the  city  in  a  four-horse  wagon.  The 
farmer  was  to  haul  them  to  Heidelberg 
township,  Berks  county,  near  where  the 
celebrated  Indian  interpreter,  Conrad  Wei- 
eer,  lived ;  for  it  was  in  that  neighborhood 
where  Mr.  Schoener,  the  maternal  uncle  of 
John  Hartman,  had  lived,  some  ten  or  fifteen 


84 


regina;  or, 


years  before,  and  he  thought  he  might  per- 
haps find  some  of  his  cousins.  But  he 
could  not  find  either  his  uncle  or  any  of  his 
cousins.  Some  of  the  oldest  inhabitants  in- 
formed him  that  a  family  by  that  name  had 
lived  there,  but  that  they  had  moved  over 
the  Blue  Mountains.  This  was  sad  news  to 
poor  Hartman.  Here  he  was  in  a  strange 
land,  among  a  strange  people,  with  a  large, 
dependent  family,  and  his  funds  fast  de- 
creasing, and  no  prospects  before  him.  But 
he  was  not  easily  discouraged :  he  trusted  in 
God.  He  became  acquainted  with  an  old 
soldier  who  had  passed  much  of  his  time  in 
war  and  hunting,  and  who  was  extensively 
acquainted  in  Pennsylvania.  This  man  ad- 
vised him  to  cross  the  Blue  Mountains  at  a 
pass  which  he  pointed  oat.  In  a  few  days 
he  and  the  old  hunter  went  over  the  moun- 
tain. The  country  pleased  Hartman  very 
much.  The  wild  mountain  scenery  reminded 
him  of  his  own  native  land ;  and,  as  several 
German  families  already  resided  there,  Hart- 
man made  up  his  mind  to  locate  there.  He 
selected  a  beautiful  spot  near  where  Orwigs- 
burg,  in  Schuylkill  county,  now  stands.  It 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  35 

was  indeed  a  beautiful  country.  There  were 
the  tall  forest-trees  and  the  pure  sparkling 
streams,  and  plenty  of  game,  such  as  deer, 
hears,  wild  turkeys,  rabbits,  squirrels,  and 
other  animals.  The  land,  too,  would  cost 
him  nothing  but  a  few  shillings  to  have  it 
patented.  He  returned  and  purchased  him- 
self an  old  wagon  and  two  horses,  for  twenty- 
seven  pounds  six  shillings  and  eight  pence ; 
the  gears  were  thrown  into  the  bargain.  He 
also  purchased  such  other  things  as  he  needed, 
and  on  a  bright  and  lovely  morning  he  started 
off  with  his  interesting  family.  In  twTo  days 
they  reached  their  new  home.  The  chil- 
dren wrere  much  pleased  with  the  journe}^. 
When  they  crossed  the  Blue  Mountains — poor 
things  ! — they  thought  they  were  in  Germany 
and  on  the  Black  Forest.  The  roads  were 
very  rough  and  hilly,  and  frequently  John 
Hartman  had  to  cut  an  opening  through 
the  dense  forest  for  the  passage  of  the 
wagon.  The  first  night  they  had  to  camp 
out,  and  wTere  much  disturbed  at  night  by 
the  howling  of  the  wolves  and  the  barking 
of  foxes.  But  they  fared  well;  Hartman 
shot  five  or  six  gray  squirrels,  and  they  had 


30 


regina;  or, 


cooking-utensils  with  them,  and  bread  and 
butter  and  salt;  so  they  made  an  excellent 
meal.  And  at  night,  after  having  committed 
themselves  into  God's  care,  they  went  to  bed 
in  the  wagon,  which  was  covered,  and  slept 
sweetly  till  morning.  Soon  after  a  hearty 
breakfast,  they  started  again,  and  reached 
their  future  home  about  five  o'clock  in  the 
afternoon.  They  halted  near  a  large  spring, 
where  the  pure,  fresh,  and  sparkling  water 
welled  up  in  great  profusion.  "Here," 
says  John  Hartman,  "here  is  our  home. 
Here  we  will,  in  the  name  of  the  Lord,  pitch 
our  tent."  This  was  in  a  lovely  little  valley 
with  lofty  mountains  all  around,  with  here 
and  there  a  gap  through  which  the  waters 
found  their  way  to  the  plains  below.  John 
Hartman's  plans  were  all  made,  and  well 
made  too.  He  could  handle  the  axe  and  the 
saw ;  and,  although  he  was  no  professed  me- 
chanic, he  could  turn  his  hand  to  almost 
any  thing.  He  had  plenty  of  timber,  and 
there  was  a  saw-mill  some  three  miles  off. 
The  land  right  round  the  spring  was  bare 
of  timber;  it  was  a  kind  of  natural  glade, 
and  contained  an  abundance  of  excellent 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  37 


grass.  The  first  evening  was  spent  in  mak- 
ing known  his  plans  to  his  family  for  the 
future.  After  supper,  they  sang  that  beau- 
tiful German  evening  hymn,  beginning 

"  Herr,  der  du  mir  das  Leben 
Bis  diesen  Tag  gegeben, 
Dick  bet'  ich  kindlich  an  ! 
Ich  bin  viel  zu  geringe 
Der  Treue,  die  ich  singe 
Und  die  du  heut'  an  mir  getban  I" 

This  hymn  was  sung  by  the  whole  family 
as  they  sat  around  the  dying  embers  of  the 
fire  that  had  cooked  their  supper;  and  the 
profound  solitude  of  those  primeval  forests 
was  broken  for  the  first  time  by  the  voice 
of  singing  and  prayer.  Hartman  and  his 
family  felt  safe.  God  is  everywhere, — as  well 
in  those  wild  and  romantic  scenes  as  in  the 
populous  city;  this  was  the  sentiment  of 
Hartman. 

The  children,  however,  often  asked  for  the 
house.  "Where  is  our  house?"  "Howarewe 
to  live  here?"  "  What  will  we  do  wrhen  it 
rains?  when  the  cold  winter  comes?"  To  all 
these  questions  Hartman  had  but  one  answer ; 
and  that  was,  "  Only  wait  a  while,  children, 

4 


38 


regixa;  or, 


and  you  will  see."  When  they  lay  down  the 
first  night  in  their  new  home,  the}7  were  very 
much  disturbed  by  the  howling  of  wolves 
and  the  barking  of  foxes,  but  at  length  they 
all  fell  asleep,  and  slept  till  morning.  In 
the  morning  the  sun  arose  clear  and  bright, 
but  to  the  Hartman  family  it  seemed  to  rise 
in  the  wrong  place.  Regina  thought  it  was 
owing  to  the  fact  that  they  were  on  the 
other  side  of  the  world.  Hartman  went  to 
the  saw-mill,  and  bought  a  load  of  slabs 
and  a  few  boards,  and  by  the  third  evening 
had  a  pretty  good  shanty  put  up.  And  the 
industrious  and  judicious  wife  soon  had  her 
little  household  matters  put  in  order.  Hart- 
man made  a  table  by  boring  four  holes  in  a 
wide  slab  and  putting  legs  in ;  and  he  also 
made  two  long  benches  in  the  same  way. 
And  thus  things  soon  began  to  look  like 
home.  George,  too,  was  a  great  help  to  his 
father;  and  Barbara  and  Regina  assisted 
their  mother  in  household  affairs.  They 
were  as  happy  as  any  children  could  be. 
Hartman  bought  himself  a  couple  of  cows, 
and  the  man  he  bought  them  from  made 
him  a  present  of  a  half-grown  puppy.  George, 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  TIIE  LOWLY.  39 

who  had  gone  with  his  father  for  the  cows, 
tied  a  string  around  his  neck  and  led  him 
home.  All  the  children  were  delighted  with 
the  dog.  A  great  question  now  arose:  — 
"  What  shall  the  dog  be  called  ?"  Some  were 
for  calling  him  Bull,  some  Penny,  some  Silly; 
but  at  length  they  all  agreed  with  a  sugges- 
tion of  the  mother  that  his  name  should  be 
Wasser;  and  Wasser  was  his  name;  and  a 
noble  dog  he  became,  as  the  future  will  show. 
Henceforth  Wasser  was  a  part  and  parcel 
of  the  family.  He  partook  in  all  the  plays 
and  enjoyments  of  the  children,  and  ren- 
dered important  service  to  the  family  in 
helping  to  secure  game. 

Wasser  drove  the  wolves  and  foxes  away, 
protected  the  poultry,  and  made  himself  use- 
ful in  many  ways.  The  children  were  all  so 
fond  of  the  dog  that  little  Christian  wanted 
to  have  him  sleep  with  him;  but  this  the 
parents  would  not  permit. 

Wasser  once  had  the  temerity  to  attack  a 
large  bear,  and  was  near  losing  his  life,  for 
the  bear  tore  him  almost  apart,  and  it  was  a 
long  time  before  the  wound  healed.  After 
that,  Wasser  would  not  attack  a  bear,  but, 


40 


regina;  or, 


when  he  found  one,  would  only  bark  until 
some  one  would  come  and  shoot  his  prize. 
Hartman  and  his  son  George  next  built  a 
stable  for  the  cattle,  then  got  logs  ready  to 
build  a  better  house,  then  made  fence  and 
got  ready  for  the  fall-sowing.  But  we  have 
not  time  now  to  dwell  on  all  the  particulars. 
Let  it  be  enough  to  say  that  Hartman  pros- 
pered greatly.  Here,  in  this  romantic  and 
retired  spot,  they  lived  and  were  happy  for 
several  years.  Their  neighbors  were  a  few 
German  families,  and  a  few  friendly  Indians, 
who  had  come  from  Shamokin,  where  the 
celebrated  missionary,  David  Brainard,  had 
preached  a  few  years  before,  and  from  which 
place  he  returned  sick  to  the  house  of  Pre- 
sident Edwards,  in  Northampton,  and  died. 
Although  these  poor  Indians  were  not  truly 
converted  to  God,  yet  they  had  heard  enough 
of  the  gospel  to  know  that  they  had  im- 
mortal souls  and  that  they  dare  not  injure 
their  fellow-men.  They  could  speak  a  little 
German,  too,  which  they  had  learned  from 
the  Moravian  missionaries,  who  sometimes 
visited  those  parts. 

Here,  then,  almost  in  solitude,  this  interest- 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  41 


ing  family  lived  in  the  service  of  God  and  in 
the  constant  practice  of  those  virtues  that  will 
make  us  happy.  Morning  and  evening  con- 
stantly witnessed  their  beautiful  singing  and 
their  fervent  prayers.  Still,  the  parents  could 
not  but  think  often  of  their  dear  native  land. 
Though  that  land  had  done  but  little  for  them, 
yet  it  was  their  native  land,  and  the  land 
that  contained  the  ashes  of  their  fathers ! 
Mr.  Hartman  was  an  energetic,  industrious, 
pious,  and  intelligent  man,  and  his  wife  was 
an  amiable  and  exemplary  Christian. 

They  had  both  been  carefully  instructed 
in  the  principles  of  the  Christian  religion 
according  to  the  time-honored  usages  of  the 
Lutheran  church.  They  were  well  ac- 
quainted with  her  doctrines;  and,  although 
they  were  not  extensively  read  in  polemics, 
yet  they  knew  that  the  doctrines  of  the 
Lord's  supper,  as  taught  in  the  Lutheran 
church,  were  not  the  same  that  were 
taught  in  the  Roman  Catholic  church. 
They  believed  in  the  Catechism  and  in  the 
Augsburg  Confession ;  but  they  did  not  be- 
lieve either  in  transubstantiation,  nor  in 
consubstantiation,  nor  in  impanation.  They 
4* 


42 


regina;  or, 


had  perhaps  never  heard  those  terms;  but 
they  believed — and  felt  it  too — that  the  Lord 
Jesus  is  present  in  the  holy  supper.  It  was 
enough  for  them  to  know  that  every  time 
they  partook  of  the  sacred  emblems  of  the 
broken  body  and  shed  blood  of  the  Son  of 
God,  they  were  strengthened  and  refreshed 
in  their  souls.    This  was  enough  for  them. 

And  as  to  holy  baptism,  they  believed 
that  it  was  an  ordinance  of  God,  and  that 
all  the  children  of  Christian  parents  should 
be  baptized.  But  they  never  were  taught 
to  believe — and  they  never  found  it  taught 
in  the  Bible — that  baptism  was  regenera- 
tion ;  but,  on  the  contrary,  they  knew  that 
they  had  been  baptized  in  their  infancy, 
and  }^et  well  recollected  the  time  when 
they  were  not  in  a  state  of  regeneration. 
They  knew,  too,  by  sad  and  bitter — and  yet 
happy — experience,  that  all  men,  whether 
baptized  or  not,  must  be  born  again. 

Their  theological  library  consisted  of — 1. 
The  Bible, — a  great,  large  Bible, — with  the 
pictures  of  the  dukes  of  Saxony  in  front,  and 
the  Augsburg  Confession  in  the  back  part. 
2.  The  good  old  Wittenbergische  Gesang 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  43 


Buch,  (or  large  Lutheran  Hymn-Book, 
published  at  Wittenberg.)  3.  Arndt's  True 
Christianity.  4.  Starke's  Prayer-Book.  5. 
A  volume  of  sermons,  by  Henry  Schubert, 
then  just  published ;  and  a  Hundred-Year 
Almanac.  Yes,  they  also  had  a  German 
ABC  book,  but  it  was  in  a  very  dilapi- 
dated condition;  still,  the  children  could 
learn  to  read  in  it.  This  was  the  whole 
literary  treasure  they  had.  The  Lutheran 
Catechism  was  lost;  and  on  one  occasion, 
when  Hartrnan  went  over  the  mountains  for 
salt  and  iron,  he  called  on  the  Rev.  Nicho- 
las Kurtz  at  Tulpehocken,  and  got  a  new 
one.  This  library,  though  small,  was  a 
good  one; — so  good,  indeed,  that  any  man 
who  had  never  seen  another  book  or  never 
heard  a  sermon  preached  could  have  found 
his  way  to  heaven  by  its  teaching.  Schu- 
bert's excellent  sermons  were  on  the 
Churches,  Gospels,  and  Epistles,  and  were 
read  every  Sabbath  by  John  Hartrnan  to  his 
family,  except  on  those  few  Sabbaths  that  he 
and  his  wife  went  to  church,  which  gene- 
rally took  them  two  days.  They  had  some 
twenty-two  miles  to  go  to  a  church,  which 


44 


regina;  or, 


stood  at  the  eastern  foot  of  the  Blue  Moun- 
tains ;  I  think  it  was  near  the  place  where 
Rehrersburg  now  stands. 

Thus  this  good  man  lived  for  some  time 
and  walked  with  God.  He  had  a  good 
farm;  and,  being  industrious  and  frugal,  he 
nad  every  thing  in  plenty  around  him.  In 
Germany,  he  had  hard  work  to  get  as  much 
coarse  black  bread  as  he  needed,  and  meat 
— he  could  get  none ;  here  he  had  plenty  of 
fine  wheat  bread,  and  as  much  meat  and 
other  things  as  he  wanted.  In  Germany, 
by  the  unjust  laws,  (laws  there  are  only 
made  to  favor  the  king  and  the  nobility,)  he 
was  not  permitted  to  fish  in  the  waters  nor 
to  hunt  in  the  forests,  and,  as  he  had  no 
money  to  spare,  he  had  to  deny  himself 
these  luxuries ;  but  here,  in  America,  he 
could  go  to  the  streams  and  catch  the  beau- 
tiful speckled  trout  whenever  he  pleased, 
lie  had  learned  the  use,  too,  of  the  rifle; 
and  many  a  sturdy  buck  and  shaggy  bear 
fell  beneath  his  well-directed  aim.  Though 
they  had  every  thing  of  a  worldly  nature 
that  heart  could  wish,  yet  they  often  felt  sad 
and  lonely ;    for  they  remembered  Zion, 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  45 


and  wept.  They  both  longed  for  the  courts 
of  the  Lord's  house;  but  no  sweet-toned 
bell  ever  broke  the  deep  solitude  of  their 
secluded  retreat.  They  heard  nothing  but 
the  howling  of  the  wolves  and  the  distant 
sound  of  the  waterfalls. 

One  beautiful  Sabbath  morning  in  au- 
tumn, when  nature  was  arrayed  in  her  ha- 
biliments of  decay  and  the  forests  clothed 
in  purple  and  gold,  John  Hartman  was  sit- 
ting on  a  bench,  under  a  grape-bower  before 
his  door,  in  a  deep  mood,  looking  at  the  fall- 
ing leaves  and  sadly  thinking  of  other  clays. 
His  wife  had  been  busy  with  her  house- 
hold affairs.  When  she  was  done,  she  came 
out  and  sat  by  his  side,  and,  perceiving  that 
sad  and  gloomy  thoughts  were  struggling 
in  his  breast,  she  thus  addressed  him : — "My 
dear  husband,  what  makes  you  look  so 
sad?"  "  Oh,"  he  replied,  "  I  am  just  think- 
ing about  the  fatherland.  This  is  the  Sab- 
bath. I  was  just  thinking  that  the  people 
at  Reutlingen  are  now  going  to  church; 
and  here  we  are,  far  from  the  courts  of  the 
Lord.  I  thought  I  heard  the  sweet  sound 
of  the  bell  on  the  old  stone  church;  but  it 


46 


regixa;  or, 


was  only  imagination.  Bring  the  Bible 
here."  She  went  in  and  brought  it.  He 
read  the  eighty-fourth  Psalm.  This  psalm 
is  not  in  German  as  it  is  in  English.  I 
think  it  is  better,  and  certainly  plainer,  in 
German.  Literally  translated  from  the  Ger- 
man, it  reads  thus : — 

"1.  How  amiable  (or  lovely)  are  thy  habi- 
tations, 0  Lord  of  hosts ! 

"  2.  My  soul  longeth  and  anxiously  look- 
eth  for  the  courts  of  the  Lord :  my  body  and 
soul  rejoice  in  the  living  God. 

"  3.  For  the  bird  has  found  a  house,  and 
the  swallow  has  found  her  nest,  where  she 
can  hatch  her  young  ones,—- even  thine 
altars,  0  Lord  of  hosts,  my  Xing  and  my 
God! 

"4.  Blessed  are  those  who  dwell  in  thine 
house !  they  praise  thee  continually.  Sela. 

"5.  Blessed  are  those  persons  who  hold 
thee  for  their  strength,  and  who  follow  thee 
from  their  hearts. 

"  6.  Those  who  pass  through  the  vale  of 
sorrow,  and  make  therein  springs  of  water 
and  the  teachers,  shall  be  favored  with  many 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  47 


blessings,  or  (more  literally)  ornamented 
with  many  blessings. 

"  7.  They  achieve  one  victory  after  the 
other,  so  that  one  must  see  that  the  true 
God  is  in  Zion. 

"  8.  0  Lord  of  hosts,  hear  my  prayer !  give 
ear,  0  God  of  Jacob  !  Sela. 

"  9.  God  our  shield,  behold  us,  look  upon 
the  kingdom  of  thy  anointed. 

"  10.  For  one  day  in  thy  courts  is  better 
than  a  thousand.  I  would  rather  be  the 
door-keeper  in  the  house  of  my  God,  than 
to  live  a  long  time  in  the  tents  of  the 
wicked. 

"  11.  For  the  Lord  God  is  a  sun  and  a 
shield ;  the  Lord  gives  grace  and  glory ;  he 
will  withhold  no  good  thing  from  the  pious. 

"  12.  0  Lord  of  hosts,  blessed  is  that  man 
who  puts  his  trust  in  thee." 

This  beautiful  psalm  gave  them  great 
comfort.  It  was  just  suited  to  their  con- 
dition, and  they  could  understand  it,  espe- 
cially the  seventh  verse, — "  Those  who  pass 
through  the  vale  of  sorrow,  and  make  there- 
in springs  of  water,  and  the  teachers,"  (or 


48 


regixa;  or. 


those  who  teach  others,)  "  shall  he  orna* 
mented  with  grace."  This  was  the  mean- 
ing Hartman  gave  it,  and  it  was  the  right 
one.  It  would  require  a  good  deal  of  holy 
ingenuity  for  a  person  not  acquainted  with 
the  Hebrew  to  gather  much  comfort  from 
the  English  version:  —  "Who  passing 
through  the  valley  of  Baca  make  it  a  well ; 
the  rain  also  fllleth  the  pools." 

"John,  John,"  said  the  pious  wife,  "you 
must  not  despond  with  such  glorious  pro- 
mises. We  are  in  the  path  of  duty;  and, 
although  we  cannot  visit  the  house  of  God 
as  often  as  we  wish,  yet  we  have  his  holy 
word,  and  we  can  worship  the  God  of 
our  fathers  even  here  in  this  wilderness. 
God  is  here  too ;  look  up  at  his  great  arched 
temple  above.  Let  us  only  be  faithful,  and 
bring  up  our  dear  children  in  the  fear  and 
nurture  of  the  Lord !  We  have  promised 
to  do  this  at  their  baptism." 

"I  know  it,"  John  replied;  "and  that  is 
the  thing  that  troubles  me  most.  There  is 
George  and  Barbara  are  now  old  enough  to 
attend  a  course  of  catechetical  lectures,  or" 
(as  he  called  it)  "  to  go  to  the  minister.  Well, 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  49 


well,"  says  John,  "  they  shall  go  next  Easter. 
I  will  send  them  over  the  Blue  Mountains 
to  Parson  Kurtz." 

This  determination  seemed  to  satisfy  him. 
John  Hartman  felt  that  the  responsibilities 
he  assumed,  when  he  had  his  children  bap- 
tized, were  not  fully  discharged  until  his 
children  were  fully  instructed  in  religion, 
and  until  they  took  the  baptismal  vows  upon 
themselves  in  confirmation.  This  was  the 
only  significance  he  could  see  in  infant  bap- 
tism, lie  could  see  no  advantage  in 
wicked,  unconverted  people  having  their 
children  baptized.  Hence,  an  old,  bearded 
man,  who  lived  in  the  same  valley,  and  who 
was  very  fond  of  controversy,  could  make 
nothing  out  of  Hartman  in  an  argument  on 
infant  baptism.  The  old  bearded  man,  who 
was  a  Dunkard,  rejected  sprinkling  and  in- 
fant baptism ;  but  Hartman  insisted  upon 
both,  and,  with  his  clear  and  scriptural 
views,  he  had  no  difficulty  in  overcoming 
his  opponent.  But  he  had  now  determined 
that  his  two  oldest  children,  George  and 
Barbara,  were  to  go  to  catechize,  and  he 
felt  quite  relieved.    His  wife,  too,  was  de- 

5 


50 


regina;  or, 


lighted  with  the  suggestion.  It  was  not 
merely  to  learn  the  letter  of  the  catechism 
that  they  were  to  go  to  the  minister,  for 
they  had  both  committed  it  to  memory, 
(and  even  little  Eegina  could  say  the  Lord's 
Prayer,  and  the  creed,  and  the  small  ques- 
tions ;)  but  they  were  to  go  in  order  to  learn 
its  spirit,  and,  by  the  prayers  and  exhorta- 
tions of  the  good  pastor,  to  be  converted  to 
God.  They  wanted  their  children  to  feel 
and  know  that  they  were  lost  and  ruined 
sinners,  and  that  nothing  but  the  blood  of 
Christ  could  save  them.  They  had  been 
awakened  and  converted  under  similar  cir- 
cumstances in  Germany;  and  their  good 
old  pastor,  before  they  left  Peutlingen,  had 
told  them  that  the  Lutheran  church  in 
America  was  the  same  as  that  in  Germany. 
He  knew  Pastor  Muhlenberg  in  Philadel- 
phia, for  he  had  seen  him  at  Halle,  and  also 
at  Grosshennersdorf,  where  he  (then  Dea- 
con Muhlenberg)  was  superintendent  of  an 
orphan  asylum.  "You  may  depend  upon 
it,"  says  the  old  pastor,  "all  those  Lutheran 
preachers  in  America  who  go  with  Pastor 
Muhlenberg  are  the  right  kind  of  Lutherans." 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  51 


This  was  a  source  of  great  comfort  to 
Hartman  and  his  wife,  that,  though  they 
left  their  native  country,  they  would  not 
have  to  leave  their  church,  for  that  church, 
thank  God !  was  transplanted  to  this  West- 
ern world  a  number  of  years  before  they 
came.  And  here  it  was  safe  from  the 
storms  of  infidelity  and  rationalism  which, 
unfortunately,  overran  the  mother  church  in 
after-ages. 

As  it  was  the  Sabbath,  Mrs.  Hartman 
proposed  that  they  wTould  now  go  into  the 
house  and  hold  their  worship.  The  chil- 
dren all  assembled;  even  the  little  Chris- 
tian knew  his  place,  on  the  little  block  in 
the  great  chimney-corner;  and,  after  hav- 
ing read  a  chapter  from  the  Bible,  t/xy 
sang  that  beautiful  hymn,  beginning- 

"Allein  und  doch  nicht  gantz  allein  bin  ich/ 

which  is,  in  English, — 

"Alone,  and  not  alone,  am  I, 

Though  in  this  solitude  so  drear; 

I  feel  my  Savior  always  nigh ; 

He  comes  the  weary  hours  to  cheer. 

I  am  with  him,  and  he  with  me, 

E'en  here  alone  I  cannot  be." 


52 


regina;  or, 


This  beautiful  hymn  was  a  favorite  hymn 
with  Mrs.  Hartman.  She  generally  sang  it 
when  her  husband  was  away.  The  chil- 
dren had  also  learned  it,  and  Regina  often 
sang  it  herself ;  and  you  will  see,  in  the  fol- 
lowing pages,  one  of  the  most  thrillingly-in- 
teresting  scenes  in  the  whole  history  of 
true  piety,  connected  with  Regina  and  this 
hymn.  The  singing  and  prayers  cheered 
up  the  hearts  of  those  pious  emigrants,  and 
they  went  on  their  way  rejoicing.  Thus 
their  solitude  was  sweetened  by  religion ; 
they  loved,  feared,  and  worshipped  God, 
and  God,  according  to  his  promise,  com- 
forted them  in  their  exile.  Their  family  de- 
votions were  never  omitted ;  family  prayer 
was  no  task  to  them,  but  a  pleasure  and  a 
delight.  They  were  truly  a  happy  family ; 
the  light  of  God's  countenance  shone  upon 
them.  Every  thing  in  their  hands  seemed 
to  prosper.  They  had  a  few  German  neigh- 
bors; and  a  few  friendly  Indians  occasion- 
ally visited  them,  and  always  shared  the 
hospitality  of  their  house.  But  the  chil- 
dren, especially  Regina,  were  always  afraid 
ot  them ;  they  looked  so  ugly,  in  their  moc- 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  J>3 

casins  and  dirty  blankets,  and  the  great 
brass  rings  they  had  in  their  ears. 

Thus  the  Hartman  family  moved  on,  for 
some  time,  with  nothing  to  mar  their  peace ; 
but,  when  affliction  did  come,  it  came  like 
a  terrible  storm. 


54 


regina;  or, 


CHAPTER  EL 

Let  us  now  look  more  minutely  at  this 
pious  and  interesting  German  family  in  the 
wilderness. 

The  family,  as  we  have  already  stated, 
consisted  of  the  father,  the  mother,  and  four 
children, — viz.:  George,  the  eldest,  aged 
about  fifteen  years,  but  was  large  and  stout 
for  his  years ;  Barbara,  aged  about  thirteen ; 
Regina,  aged  about  ten,  and  little  Christian, 
aged  about  four  and  a  half.  Regina  was 
the  pride  of  the  family.  Mrs.  Hartman 
sometimes  playfully  boasted  that  Regina 
took  after  her  family ;  while  John  would  in- 
sist upon  it  that  she  wras  a  Hartman  out 
and  out. 

It  was  a  source  of  great  pleasure  to  these 
pious  parents — and  they  often  thanked  God 
for  it — that  their  children  were  all  sound  in 
body  and  well-formed,  and  had  all  their  senses 
in  perfection.    They  were  all  dedicated  to 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  65 

God  in  holy  baptism,  when  they  promised  to 
bring  them  up  in  the  fear  and  admonition  of 
the  Lord ;  and  how  faithfully  they  attended 
to  this  duty  the  sequel  will  show.  There 
were,  of  course,  no  schools  in  their  neigh- 
borhood, and  the  parents  had  to  instruct 
them  as  well  as  they  could  during  the  long 
winter  evenings.  George  and  Barbara  had 
gone  some  to  school  in  Germany,  and  Re- 
gina  had  learned  to  read,  and  little  Chris- 
tian could  say  his  letters  and  spell  a  little. 
They  were  all  carefully  taught  the  Lutheran 
Catechism,  and  wTere  also  taught  to  sing  and 
to  pray.  They  were  also  early  taught  to 
work  and  thus  to  make  themselves  useful. 
They  knew  nothing  about  idleness,  which 
is  so  often  the  cause  of  mischief  and  bad 
habits.  They  had  their  little  German 
plays,  and  remembered  many  little  stories 
which  they  had  heard  in  Germany,  and 
sometimes  their  kind  mother  would  tell 
them  one.  They  were  brought  up  well, 
and  early  taught  to  obey  their  parents. 
They  always  spoke  the  truth,  and  never  de- 
nied any  thing  they  had  done.  They  were 
early  taught,  too,  to  remember  that  God3 


56 


recjina;  or, 


who,  though  he  dwells  in  the  heavens,  be- 
holds all  the  thoughts  and  actions  of  little 
children  as  well  as  grown  persons.  This 
had  an  excellent  effect  upon  their  young 
and  tender  minds.  It  was  this  thought  that 
made  them  such  good  children  and  saved 
them  from  so  many  sins  which  most  children 
commit. 

In  order  as  much  as  possible  to  root  out 
of  their  naturally  depraved  hearts  that  in- 
bred selfishness  which  is  the  lot  of  every 
fallen  child  of  Adam,  the  pious  parents 
tried  to  instill  into  their  young  and  tender 
hearts  sentiments  of  generosity,  love,  and 
benevolence.  Even  little  Christian  had  his 
natural  selfishness  so  far  overcome  that  he 
would  share  his  last  crust  of  bread  with  Was- 
ser,  the  faithful  house-dog.  If  one  of  the 
children  would  happen  to  find  a  fine  lot  of 
wild  strawberries,  or  raspberries,  or  grapes, 
or  any  other  kind  of  fruit,  he  would  be 
sure  to  bring  them  home  and  share  with  the 
rest.  And  when  they  had  any  work  to  do, 
the  one  would  not  put  the  most  labor  on 
the  other,  but  each  one  would  do  his  or  her 
fal'  part  according  to  ability.    If  the  cows 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  57 


had  to  be  hunted  in  the  forest,  or  the  pigs, 
all  wanted  to  go.  Another  very  com- 
mendable trait  in  these  children  was,  that 
they  never  quarrelled  with  each  other, — not 
even  in  sport, — but  loved  each  other,  and 
were  always  kind  and  cheerful.  Oh,  what 
happy  children  they  were  !  Would  that  all 
the  children  that  read  this  book  were  like 
them.  How  clifferent  do  we  often  find  it 
among  children  of  the  same  family!  All 
children  could  be  happy  if  they  would  do 
like  these  little  German  children  of  the 
woods.  For  these  dear  little  children  were 
by  nature  just  like  all  other  children. 

John  Hartman,  like  most  of  his  country- 
men, was  naturally  passionate  and  of  a 
hasty  temper,  and  if  the  grace  of  God  had 
not  renewed  his  wicked  heart  he  would 
have  been,  like  the  rest  of  them,  ungovern- 
able, and  perhaps  dangerous ;  but  religion 
had  changed  the  lion  into  the  lamb.  And 
his  wife,  Magdalena,  was  truly  a  model  wo- 
man ;  she  was  always  cheerful  and  happy 
and  even-tempered.  Her  bright  and  cheer- 
ful countenance  always  diffused  joy  and 
happiness  around  her.    If  you  want  to  see 


58 


regina;  or, 


a  fall-length  portrait  of  this  excellent  Ger- 
man housewife,  just  look  at  the  thirty -first 
chapter  of  Proverbs,  and  there  you  will  find 
it.  Her  price  was  indeed  far  above  rubies ; 
the  heart  of  her  husband  could  safely  trust 
in  her;  and,  as  it  is  in  the  German  Bible, 
"Nourishment  was  never  wanting  in  her 
house.  She  could  make  the  spinning-wheel 
hum  and  buzz  most  merrily ;  her  children 
were  always  warmly  clad.  She  feared  not 
the  cold  nor  the  snow.  She  opened  her 
mouth  in  wisdom,  and  on  her  tongue  was 
the  law  of  kindness.  She  indeed  did  look 
well  to  her  household,  and  ate  not  the 
bread  of  idleness.  Her  children  called  her 
blessed,  and  her  husband  praised  her." 

Many  a  time  did  John  Hartman  thank 
God  for  having  given  him  such  an  excellent 
companion.  And  well  he  might;  for  it  was 
she,  in  a  great  measure,  had  made  him  what 
he  then  was ;  her  mild  and  amiable  disposi- 
tion had  a  powerful  influence  upon  him. 
What  a  rich  blessing  a  pious  wife  is  to  a 
family !  It  is  a  hard  thing  for  a  wicked  - 
husband  to  resist  the  holy  and  calm  influ- 
ence of  a  pious  wife. 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  59 


George  was  a  fine,  large  boy,  past  fifteen, 
and  was  a  great  help  to  his  father;  for  he 
could  plough  and  harrow,  and  drive  the 
team,  and  chop  wood,  and,  as  he  was 
brought  up  to  labor,  he  was  as  willing  to 
work  as  he  was  able.  Barbara,  too,  was  a 
fine,  hardy  girl,  and  a  great  comfort  to  her 
mother;  she  could  knit,  and  sew,  and  spin, 
and  sometimes  even  did  the  baking.  But 
Eegina  was  the  flower  of  the  flock.  She  was 
just  turned  of  ten  years,  but  was  quite  large 
for  her  age.  She  was  a  beautiful  girl;  in- 
deed, one  seldom  sees  a  more  beautiful 
creature  in  town  or  country  than  she  was. 
It  is  a  pity  that  she  lived  before  the  art  of 
daguerreotyping  was  discovered,  or  before 
the  sun  had  got  to  be  a  portrait-painter,  or 
we  should  have  had  a  picture  of  this  moun- 
tain maid  in  this  book.  In  those  days  none 
but  the  rich  people  had  their  portraits  and 
miniatures  taken.  But,  fortunately,  in  my 
youth  I  was  acquainted  with  a  number  of 
old  people  in  Berks  county  who  had  known 
Eegina  Hartman  well  and  recollected  how 
Bhe  looked.  She  had  a  well-formed  body, 
i  dither  corpulent  nor  slender,  and  fine, 


(30 


regina;  or, 


round,  faultless  head,  covered  with  a  pro- 
fusion of  soft,  wavy,  light  auburn  hair;  a 
bright  hazel  eye ;  a  Grecian  nose ;  a  mouth 
of  exquisite  mould;  a  fair,  transparent  skin, 
and  her  cheeks  rivalled  the  richest  carmine 
of  the  new-blown  rose.  She  was  full  of  life 
and  animation,  always  cheerful  and  happy. 
THien  she  strolled — as  she  sometimes  did — 
through  the  dense  forests,  and  exercised  her 
lungs  in  singing,  she  seemed  like  a  sylvan 
fairy.  Her  voice  sounded  delightfully  un- 
der the  arched  foliage  of  the  lofty  pines. 
"When  George  was  engaged  with  his  father, 
the  girls,  Barbara  and  Regina,  had  to  hunt 
the  cows  in  the  deep  forests  that  surrounded 
their  father's  house.  On  one  occasion  they 
had  gone  farther  into  the  forest  than  usual. 
They  heard  a  noise  in  the  thick  underwood : 
and,  on  going  nearer,  they  saw  a  great  bear 
with  two  cubs.  They  were  dreadfully 
alarmed.  Little  Christian,  as  usual,  had 
followed  them.  Barbara  ran  with  all  her 
might,  never  thinking  of  her  little  brother. 
But  not  so  Eegina;  she  caught  the  child, 
and  carried  it  along  until  thev  were  safe. 
She  was  a  heroine. 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  TIIE  LOWLY.  61 

On  another  occasion  Pegina  lost  her- 
self. She  had  gone  for  whortleberries,  and, 
not  thinking  much,  she  went  beyond  her 
range,  or  away  from  the  grounds  with  which 
she  was  acquainted.  It  was  late  in  the  after- 
noon. At  first  she  did  not  know  she  was 
lost,  but  wandered  on,  and  on,  and  on, 
thinking  she  was  going  toward  home ;  and 
all  the  while  she  w7as  going  farther  away. 
But  when  night  began  to  settle  down  upon 
the  dense  forest,  oh,  how  horrible  were  her 
feelings!  She  cried  aloud;  but  no  sound 
save  her  own  echo  reached  her  ears.  Poor 
child !  what  should  she  do  or  where  should 
she  go?  She  pushed  on  through  the  thick 
underwood  as  fast  as  she  could,  and  the 
darkness  was  increasing  every  moment. 
At  length,  overcome  by  fright  and  fatigue, 
she  determined  to  lie  down.  It  wTas  now  so 
dark  in  the  thick  laurel-bushes  that  she  could 
not  see  any  thing  around  her.  Poor  girl ! 
she  was  in  a  bad  way.  She  sat  down  by 
the  root  of  a  large  oak-tree,  on  an  elevated 
moss-covered  root;  there  she  sat,  thinking 
of  home  and  her  sad  condition.  The 
wolves,  too,  were  howling  around  her.  At 
6 


62 


RE  GIN  A;  OR, 


length  she  felt  sleepy;  and,  as  she  had 
been  taught  never  to  go  to  sleep  without 
saying  her  prayers,  she  knelt  down  by  the 
side  of  the  great  oak,  and,  lifting  up  her 
little  heart  to  God,  she  said  all  the  sweet 
little  prayers  she  had  been  taught,  and  then 
commended  herself  into  the  hands  of  God 
and  laid  down  to  sleep.  She  was  soon  in  a 
sound  sleep.  There  she  lay  upon  the  soft 
moss,  and,  as  she  was  a  good  and  pious 
child,  we  may  well  imagine  that  the  angels 
of  the  Lord  encamped  round  about  her 
and  watched  over  this  defenceless  little  one. 
The  same  Almighty  Berns:  who  had  closed 
the  mouths  of  the  lions  in  the  den  where 
Daniel  was,  and  caused  an  angel  to  slay  in 
one  single  night  one  hundred  and  eighty- 
five  thousand  of  the  Assyrian  host  of  the 
impious  Sennacherib,  could  he  not  com- 
mission his  angels  to  watch  over  this  lost 
child  in  the  forest?  But  we  will  let  the 
poor  lost  child  sleep  upon  her  soft  mossy 
bed,  with  the  assurance  that  He  who  has 
numbered  the  hairs  of  our  head,  and  with- 
out whose  notice  not  even  a  sparrow  falls  to 
the  ground,  will  watch  over  her.    Sleep  on, 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  63 


sweet  child ;  God's  eye  guards  thee.  Let 
us  now  return  to  the  house. 

John  Hartman  and  his  son  George  had 
started  to  the  mill  that  day  with  a  grist; 
and,  as  they  had  to  wait  until  it  was 
ground,  they  did  not  get  home  until  late 
iu  the  evening.  Wasser,  too,  had  gone 
along,  for  he  always  wTent  wTith  the  wagon. 
About  sundown  Mrs.  Hartman  became  un- 
easy about  Regina.  She  questioned  Bar- 
bara and  Christian  very  closely  about  her, 
and  could  learn  nothing  more  than  that 
they  had  all  gone  out  to  the  whortleberry- 
bushes  together  about  the  middle  of  the 
afternoon,  and  that  Regina  had  her  little 
basket  nearly  full  of  whortleberries  when 
they  last  saw  her,  up  near  the  large  chest- 
nut-tree, from  which  father  had  once  shot  a 
bear.  They  saw  her  picking  whortleberries 
and  going  toward  the  run ;  and,  as  they  had 
their  baskets  full,  they  waited  a  long  time 
for  her  at  the  big  chestnut-tree.  And 
when  she  did  not  come,  Barbara  went  out 
far  into  the  woods  and  called  as  loud  as  she 
could,  but  got  no  answer.  She  then  con- 
cluded that  Regina  went  round  by  the 


64 


regina;  or, 


grape-vines  and  had  gone  home.  As  soon 
as  the  mother  heard  this,  she  ran  out  to 
the  barn,  calling  Regina,  and  looking  all 
around  for  her,  thinking  that  perhaps  she 
might  have  been  very  tired  and  laid  down 
to  sleep;  but  no  Regina  was  to  be  found. 
She  then  ran  up  to  the  great  chestnut-tree, 
calling  all  the  while  with  all  her  might. 
She  then  returned  to  the  house,  and  sat 
down  and  cried  for  her  poor  lost  child ! 
It  was  now  getting  dark,  and  John  Hart- 
man  was  not  at  home,  and  what  was  to  be 
done  she  did  not  know.  At  one  time  she 
thought  she  would  plunge  right  into  the 
forest,  and  not  give  up  until  she  had  found 
her  lost  child;  but  then  she  was  not  ac- 
quainted with  the  forest,  and  might  lose 
herself  and  not  find  her  child.  If  only 
John  and  George  were  at  home !  While 
thus  perplexed,  and  not  knowing  what  to 
do,  the  children  heard  the  rattling  of  the 
wagon.  She  could  not  wait  until  John  got 
into  the  house,  but  ran  out  and  told  him 
that  Regina  was  lost.  John  was  not  much 
alarmed,  for  he  knew  he  could  find  her. 
So  he  went  into  the  house,  and  told  George 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  65 

to  ungear  the  horses  and  turn  them  into 
the  meadow.  When  he  was  in  the  house 
he  told  his  wife  to  get  him  a  stocking  be- 
longing to  Regina — one  that  had  not  been 
washed  since  she  had  worn  it.  She  won- 
dered what  he  wanted  with  a  stocking,  but 
she  gave  him  one. 

"Now,"  says  he,  "come,  George,  we  will 
eat  a  piece,  and  give  Wasser  a  piece  also, 
and  we  will  soon  find  our  little  lost  girl, 
who  is,  no  doubt,  asleep  somewhere  among 
the  pine-trees." 

John  took  his  rifle  along,  and  George 
took  some  fat  pine-knots,  so  that  they  could 
strike  up  a  fire  if  necessary. 

"Now,"  says  he,  "come,  George  and 
Wasser;  and  you  have  the  supper  ready," 
(addressing  his  wife,)  "and  we  will  soon 
come  back  with  Regina." 

He  took  the  direct  route  to  the  great 
chestnut-tree.  It  was  now  near  nine  o'clock. 
When  he  got  into  the  forest  he  found  it 
much  darker  than  he  had  supposed.  At 
first  he  had  some  difficulty  in  getting 
along;  but  as  his  pupils  dilated  he  could 
see  better.  It  was  a  clear,  starlight  night. 
6* 


66 


REGIXA  ;  OR, 


"When  lie  came  to  the  great  chestnut-treo 
he  stopped,  and  called  Wasser  to  him,  and 
talked  to  him  as  he  would  to  a  man. 
Wasser  sat  down  on  his  haunches,  and 
looked  very  grave,  and  seemed  to  listen  to 
every  thing  that  was  said. 

"  Now,  Wasser,  Regina  is  lost,  and  you 
must  find  her."  Wasser  wagged  his  tail, 
which  seemed  to  indicate  that  he  under- 
stood his  master.  John  then  took  Re- 
gina's  stocking,  and  put  it  to  Wasser's 
nose. 

"isow,"  says  he,  "such  'em  out — such  'em 
out!" 

Wasser  understood  the  matter  now, — 
and,  putting  his  nose  to  the  ground,  ran 
all  around  under  the  tree,  until  he  fairly 
got  on  Regina's  track.  As  soon  as  he  got 
the  scent  of  the  stocking,  he  gave  one  loud 
yell  and  started  off  up  the  hill. 

" There,"  says  John  Hartman,  "Wasser 
is  on  the  track,  and  the  child  is  safe !  I 
have  never  known  that  dog  to  give  a  false 
alarm." 

John  Hartman  and  his  son  followed. 
Every  now  and  then  Wasser  would  give  a 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  67 

sharp  yell,  which  enabled  them  to  keep  on 
the  trail.  They  passed  on  mile  after  mile, 
until  they  thought  they  were  about  four 
miles  from  home.  At  last  they  heard  the 
well-known  double  yell  of  Wasser,  nearly 
half  a  mile  off. 

"There  she  is,"  says  John;  "  he  has 
found  her !  Thank  God,  the  child  is 
found.  She  must  have  been  much  bewil- 
dered to  go  so  far  from  home.  We  must 
keep  down  to  the  right;  there,  don't  you 
hear?" 

But  now  let  us  look  at  Regina.  She  fell 
into  a  sound  sleep,  but  it  did  not  last  long ; 
the  howling  of  the  wolves  and  the  thoughts 
of  home  disturbed  her  slumbers.  She  had 
just  awoke  when  she  heard  the  first  yell  of 
Wasser.  She  did  not  know  the  voice  of 
her  faithful  companion,  but  thought  sure 
enough  the  wolves  were  now  coming  upon 
her.  She  was  dreadfully  alarmed ;  nearer, 
and  still  nearer  came  the  sound.  Then 
she  heard  the  brushwood  trampled  under 
the  feet  of  the  approaching  wolf.  Deep 
horror  almost  froze  her  very  vitals ;  she 
screamed,  but  had  not  power  to  flee.  The 


G8 


regina;  or, 


next  moment  the  faithful  dog  was  there, 
and  jumped  with  his  forefeet  upon  her,  but 
not,  as  she  supposed,  to  tear  her  to  pieces. 
It  was  only  when  she  found  that  she  was 
not  torn  to  pieces  that  her  thoughts  began 
to  return.  And  it  was  not  until  Wasser  be- 
gan to  lick  her  hand  that  she  knew  him,  and 
she  then  laughed  through  her  tears  and  pat- 
ted his  shaggy  head.  Wasser  now  ran  back 
a  short  distance  and  barked.  This  brought 
Hartman  and  George  to  the  spot.  When 
Regina  heard  their  voices  she  knew  that 
she  was  found.  The  father,  too,  was  re- 
joiced ;  and  George  lighted  a  pine-knot, 
and  they  retraced  their  steps.  The  dim  out- 
line of  a  mountain-ridge,  which  Hartman 
could  occasionally  see,  enabled  him  to  keep 
the  direct  course  home.  It  was  nearly 
twelve  o'clock  when  they  returned ;  and  I 
need  not  inform  you  that  there  was  great 
rejoicing  in  that  house  that  night.  It  was 
as  if  the  dead  were  alive  and  the  lost  were 
found.  The  mother  wept  for  joy,  and 
kissed  Regina  over  and  over  again.  That 
night  John  Hartman  read  in  his  family  de- 
votions the  first  part  of  the  fifteenth  chapter 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  69 

of  Luke,  the  parable  of  the  lost  sheep,  and 
made  some  appropriate  remarks,  especially 
on  the  seventh  verse.  So,  after  eating  a 
good  supper,  they  all  retired  to  rest,  think- 
ing of  the  wonderful  providence  of  God 
that  had  restored  their  lost  child.  Wasset 
had  always  been  a  great  favorite  in  the 
family,  but  by  his  exploit  that  night  he  had 
endeared  himself  more  than  ever  to  the 
whole  family.  John  Hartman  often  said 
he  would  rather  lose  the  best  horse  on  the 
farm  than  to  lose  Wasser.  And  no  won- 
der; who  would  not  love  such  a  noble 
dog  ? 

Nothing  remarkable  occurred  in  the 
family  for  some  time.  The  children  were 
obedient  to  their  parents  and  improved 
from  day  to  day,  and  the  parents  thanked 
God  for  giving  them  such  excellent  chil- 
dren. Such  was  the  happiness  of  the  Hart- 
man  family,  and  so  much  w7ere  they  pleased 
writh  their  new  home  in  America,  that  Ger- 
many was  fast  fading  from  their  minds. 
They  were  indeed  a  happy  family.  How 
delightful  it  is  to  see  a  happy  family  in  this 
jarring  and  discordant  world ! 


70 


regixa;  or, 


Things  prospered  wonderfully  in  the 
hands  of  Hartman  and  his  industrious 
family.  The  house  was  much  improved 
and  furnished  with  many  comforts ;  the  barn, 
too,  was  enlarged;  and  the  well-cultivated 
fields  groaned  under  the  heavy  weight  of 
the  golden  harvests.  John  Hartman  looked 
with  pleasure  at  his  fat,  sleek  horses,  and 
his  well-fed  cows,  and  his  plentiful  crops, 
and  wished  in  his  heart  that  many  of  his 
poor  neighbors  in  Germany,  who  he  knew 
were  often  destitute  of  bread,  could  also  be 
his  neighbors  in  America.  If  all  the  German 
and  Irish  emigrants  were  as  sober  and  in- 
dustrious as  John  Hartman,  there  would  not 
be  so  many  paupers  among  them.  But, 
alas !  many  who  come  to  this  country  be- 
come indolent  and  intemperate,  and  of 
course  remain  poor  and  miserable  all  their 
lives ;  and  their  coming  here  does  not  im- 
prove their  condition. 

But  we  must  pass  on.  When  all  things 
were  prosperous  in  the  Hartman  family, 
and  a  long  and  happy  future  seemed  to  be 
before  them,  God  in  his  wisdom  and  won- 
derful providence  permitted  a  terrible  ca- 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  71 


lamity  to  fall  upon  them, — such  a  dreadful 
calamity  as  few  families  are  ever  called  upon 
to  suffer.  But,  as  the  ways  of  God  are  past 
finding  out,  and  as  he  is  too  wise  to  err  and 
too  good  to  afflict  his  people  unnecessarily, 
we  must  conclude  that  all  he  does  or  per- 
mits is  for  the  best. 

Piety,  however  fervent  and  genuine,  will 
not  exempt  us  from  the  afflictions  of  life. 
All  our  afflictions  are  said  to  he  mercies  in 
disguise.  Well  may  we  exclaim,  in  the 
beautiful  language  of  Cowper, — 

u  God  moves  in  a  mysterious  way, 
His  wonders  to  perform ; 
He  plants  his  footsteps  in  the  sea, 
And  rides  upon  the  storm ! 

"Deep  in  unfathomable  mines 
Of  never-failing  skill, 
Tfn  treasures  up  his  bright  designs, 
And  works  his  sov'reign  will." 


72 


regina;  or, 


CHAPTER  TV. 

THE    DREADFUL   CALAMITY   THAT    FELL  UPON 
THE  HARTMAN  FAMILY. 

Hartman  was  not  afraid  of  the  wild  men, 
(die  wUderiy)  as  he  used  to  call  the  Indians. 
And,  as  those  whom  he  had  seen  at  his  own 
house  and  at  the  trading-posts  were  friendly 
and  civil,  and  as  he  had  never  heard  any 
thing  bad  about  them,  he  had  no  reason  to 
fear  them.  In  those  days  there  were  no 
books  nor  newspapers  in  the  country  to  in- 
form the  people  of  one  colony  what  took 
place  in  another;  so  that  Hartman  did  not 
know  the  danger  he  was  in  on  a  frontier 
settlement.  Poor  man !  he  little  understood 
the  nature  of  those  cruel  and  bloodthirsty 
savages.    But  he  found  them  out  at  last. 

In  order  fully  to  understand  the  state  of 
things  in  our  country  in  1744,  (the  year  in 
whioh  the  terrible  calamity  which  we  are 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  73 

about  to  narrate  foil  upon  the  Hartman 
family,)  it  will  be  necessary  to  refer  to  the 
colonial  history  of  that  period.  The  Ameri- 
can Indians,  who  were  the  aborigines  or 
first  settlers  of  this  country,  were  very  nu- 
merous when  Columbus,  in  1492,  first  came 
to  this  western  continent.  They  were 
found  from  the  sunny  south  of  Central 
America  to  the  frozen  regions  of  Labrador, 
and  all  pretty  much  alike.  But  it  is  the 
opinion  of  many  learned  men  now,  that  the 
races  found  in  this  country  when  Columbus 
came  were  not  the  earliest  settlers  of  the 
soil,  but  that  there  were  other  and  far  more 
intelligent  races  here  before  them, — races 
who  were  much  further  advanced  in  the 
arts  and  sciences  than  the  present  races. 
This  is  inferred  from  the  many  monuments 
found  in  Central  America,  Mexico,  and  in 
the  United  States.  If  you  want  to  know 
any  thing  further  on  this  interesting  sub- 
ject, you  must  get  books  on  the  antiquity 
of  America.  We  intend  to  confine  our  re- 
marks to  the  Indians  who  w7ere  here  in 
1744,  and  try  to  account  for  their  extreme 
wickedness  and  the  reasons  why  they  took 
7 


74 


regixa;  or, 


such  delight  in  the  shedding  of  the  blood 
of  their  fellow-creatures.  The  American 
Indians  were  not  half  so  bad  before  their 
intercourse  with  the  Spaniards  at  the  South 
and  the  French  at  the  Xorth.  At  an  early 
day  the  Indians  in  Canada  were  brought 
under  the  influence  of  the  French  Jesuits. 
J3oth  the  French  and  Spanish  missionaries 
taught  the  Indians  to  hate  the  English  be- 
cause they  were  Protestants.  The  French 
Roman  Catholic  missionaries  had  been  la- 
boring a  long  time  among  the  Northern 
Indians  ;  but  their  system  of  instruc- 
tion amounted  to  nothing.  Thev  made 
them  ten  times  worse  than  they  found 
them.  Instead  of  teaching  them  to  read 
God's  holy  word,  they  taught  them  to  count 
their  beads  ;  and,  instead  of  teaching  them 
to  pray  to  their  heavenly  Father  through 
Jesus  Christ,  they  taught  them  to  pray  to  the 
Virgin  Mary;  and,  instead  of  directing  them 
to  the  blood  of  Christ,  that  "cleanses  from 
all  sin."  they  taught  them  to  rely  upon  the 
foolish  and  unmeaning  mummeries  of  the 
priests  for  salvation.  They  baptized  them 
and  called  them  Christians :  and  yet  they 


TRUE  FIETY  AMOIW     TIE  LOWLY. 


75 


knew  nothing  of  the  spirit  of  Christianity. 
Since  that  time  many  Protestant  mission- 
aries have  labored  among  them,  and  many 
have  been  truly  converted  to  God,  and  are 
bright  and  glorious  examples  of  the  power 
of  God's  grace.  Catharine  Brown,  who 
died  such  a  triumphantly  happy  death,  and 
whose  piety  has  been  celebrated  throughout 
the  world,  was  an  Indian  girl ;  and  if  you 
ever  visit  Bethlehem,  a  Moravian  town  in 
Northampton  county,  Pennsylvania,  you 
will  see  in  the  plain  and  beautiful  grave- 
yard in  that  town  the  tombs  of  many  con- 
verted Indians.  But  the  poor  Indians  of 
Canada  would  have  been  better  off  if  the 
Roman  Catholic  missionaries  had  never 
come  among  them. 

The  French  people  were  the  first  Euro- 
peans who  settled  in  Canada.  Nearly  three 
hundred  years  ago,  a  Frenchman  by  the 
name  of  James  Cartier,  with  a  French  army, 
sailed  up  the  St.  Lawrence  River  and  built 
a  fort  where  the  city  of  Quebec  now  stands. 
From  this  point  the  first  French  mission- 
aries went  forth  to  convert  the  Indians  to 
Christianity.    But  a  sad  work  they  made  of 


70 


rbgtjta;  or, 


it,  as  we  have  already  seen.  Henry  the 
Fourth.  King  of  France,  appointed  the  Mar- 
quis de  la  Eoche  the  first  Governor-General 
of  Canada.  The  French  held  the  undis- 
puted possession  of  the  country  for  more 
than  one  hundred  years,  and  in  all  that  time 
accomplished  nothing.  James  Cartier  lo- 
cated his  fort  in  1535;  but  no  permanent 
settlement  was  made  until  1607,  when  M. 
de  Champlain  founded  the  present  city  of 
Quebec.  But  such  were  the  immoral  ten- 
dencies of  the  Eoman  Catholic  religion  that 
no  regular  government  could  be  introduced 
until  about  1655  or  1660.  In  1756,  war  was 
declared  between  France  and  England. 
The  English,  who  then  owned  the  territory 
which  now  composes  the  most  of  the  States 
of  our  Union,  had  already,  as  early  as  1740, 
set  their  hearts  on  Canada.  The  English 
said  of  right  it  belonged  to  them,  the 
French  disputed  their  claim ;  so  there  was  no 
other  way  but  to  right  it  out.  A  great  many 
battles  were  fought,  the  Indians  always 
lighting  with  the  French  against  the  Eng- 
lish. Still,  in  the  end,  the  French  and  the 
Indians  had  the  worst  of  the  battle;  for  all 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  77 

Canada  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  English. 
While  the  war  lasted,  the  French  officers  did 
all  in  their  power  to  instigate  the  poor  igno- 
rant Indians  to  perpetrate  deeds  of  cruelty 
and  blood.  They  were  offered  so  much  for 
every  white  man  or  woman  whom  they 
would  murder.  The  scalp  was  the  evidence 
that  they  had  killed  a  white  man.  Hence 
they  always  scalped  all  they  had  murdered  ; 
and  so  anxious  were  they  to  get  the  scalp 
that  sometimes  the  person  scalped  was  not 
murdered;  and  there  are  cases  on  record 
where  persons  were  shot,  tomahawked,  and 
scalped,  and  yet  recovered.  The  scalping 
was  done  in  the  following  way : — the  person 
was  either  shot,  tomahawked,  or  knocked 
down  with  a  club ;  as  soon  as  the  poor  vic- 
tim was  prostrated,  the  cruel  savage  rolled 
him  over  on  his  back,  then  sprang  upon  him 
with  his  knees  on  his  breast,  took  hold  of  the 
hair  in  the  front  part  of  the  head  with  his 
left  hand  and  pulled  with  all  his  might, 
then  gave  a  tremendous  yell,  and  applied 
his  scalping-knife  and  cut  off  a  piece  of  skin 
about  as  large  as  a  child's  hand,  thus  lay- 
ing the  skull  bare.  It  was  a  horrible  opera  - 
7* 


78 


regixa;  or, 


tion,  the  very  recital  of  which  causes  the 
blood  to  curdle  in  our  veins  ;  yet  some  In- 
dians boasted  of  the  hundreds  of  scalps 
they  had  taken.  It  is  said  of  an  Eng- 
lishman, that  his  wig  once  saved  his 
life.  He  was  pursued  by  an  Indian,  who 
felled  him  to  the  earth  with  a  club  and 
jumped  upon  him,  and,  when  he  grasped 
his  hair,  the  whole  skin  came  off.  The  In- 
dian was  so  amused  at  this  strange  occur- 
rence that  he  burst  into  a  fit  of  laughter, 
and,  looking  at  the  wig,  he  said,  "It  is  a 
lie;"  and,  entering  into  a  parley  with  the 
Englishman,  let  him  off  for  the  price  of  a 
icalp,  which  was  about  fifteen  shillings.  It 
must  be  said,  to  the  honor  of  the  French 
officers,  that  they  never  paid  the  Indians 
for  the  scalps  of  children  and  women. 
Hence,  not  a  great  many  women  or  chil- 
dren were  scalped,  unless  the  Indians 
were  drunk  or  had  some  great  wrongs  to 
avenge. 

The  savages  would  go  out  in  parties  of 
from  ten  to  fifty  in  a  company,  and,  being 
mostly  inflamed  with  French  brandy  and 
urged  on  with  the  hope  of  getting  French 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  79 

money,  which  would  enable  them  to  pro- 
cure more  brandy,  they  would  stealthily 
visit  the  sparsely-settled  neighborhoods,  and 
murder  and  scalp  all  who  would  come  in 
their  wray.  They  generally  came  over  the 
river  belowT  the  Niagara  Falls,  and,  as  the 
western  part  of  New  York  was  then  an  un- 
inhabited wilderness,  they  passed  through 
into  Pennsylvania  on  their  bloody  excur- 
sions. Sometimes,  however,  the  English 
were  prepared  for  them,  and  gave  them  a 
warm  reception ;  and  many  a  bloodthirsty 
Indian  fell  under  the  steady  aim  of  the 
hardy  pioneer.  The  French  and  Indian 
war  continued  with  unabated  fury  for  thir- 
teen years,  from  1745  to  1758,  when,  after 
a  bloody  battle,  General  Wolfe's  army 
compelled  the  French  to  surrender  Quebec, 
though  that  brave  general  himself  fell, 
mortally  wounded,  and  peace  was  made 
soon  after.  But,  during  the  period  from 
1744  to  1759,  which  may  with  great  pro- 
priety be  called  the  "  Bloody  Age  of 
American  History,"  what  terrible  scenes 
were  enacted !  It  would  require  volumes 
to  record  half  the  scenes  of  blood  that 


80  regina;  or, 

came  to  light;  and  thousands  of  the  most 
cruel  murders  committed  have,  no  doubt, 
never  been  known.  The  whole  history 
of  the  world  can  hardly  present  such 
another  picture  of  bloodshed  and  rapine. 
We  here  subjoin  an  account  of  two  men 
that  were  scalped,  one  of  whom  recovered. 
This  occurred  at  the  siege  of  Fort  Stanwix, 
in  1777. 

"  Captain  Gregg  left  the  garrison  one 
day,  in  company  with  a  corporal,  for  the 
purpose  of  shooting  wild  pigeons.  When 
the  day  was  far  advanced,  Gregg,  knowing 
that  the  savages  were  continually  prowling 
around  the  fort,  made  up  his  mind  to  re- 
turn. At  that  moment  a  flock  of  pigeons 
alighted  upon  a  tree  close  by.  The  corporal 
proposed  to  try  a  shot  at  them,  and,  having 
approached  near  enough,  was  in  the  act  of 
raising  his  gun,  when  the  report  of  two  mus- 
kets was  heard  close  by.  Captain  Gregg 
that  instant  saw  his  companion,  the  corpo- 
ral, fall,  and  felt  himself  badly  wounded  in 
the  side.  He  tried  to  keep  his  feet,  but  could 
not;  he  fell  to  the  earth,  and  the  next  mo- 
ment saw  a  huge  half-naked  savage  making 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  81 


rapid  strides  toward  him  with  his  tomahawk 
in  his  hand.  He  was  horrified,  for  he  was 
powerless.  The  Indian  ran  up  to  him  wTith 
the  uplifted  tomahawk  and  struck  him 
several  blows  on  the  head,  then  drew  his 
scalping-knife,  cut  a  circle  through  the  skin 
from  the  forehead  to  the  crown  of  his  head, 
and  drew  off  the  scalp  with  his  teeth.  At 
the  approach  of  the  savage,  Gregg  had 
counterfeited  the  appearance  of  being  dead 
with  as  much  address  as  he  could  use,  and 
succeeded  in  persuading  his  butcher  that 
he  was  actually  dead,  otherwise  he  wTould 
certainly  have  been  killed.  The  pain  pro- 
duced by  these  wounds  was  intense  and 
dreadful.  The  savages,  having  finished 
their  bloody  work,  withdrew.  As  soon  as 
they  were  out  of  sight,  Captain  Gregg 
determined  to  make  his  way  to  his  fallen 
companion;  but  he  found  himself  very 
weak,  and  it  was  only  after  three  or  four 
attempts  that  he  was  able  to  rise.  When 
he  came  to  his  companion  he  found  him 
dead  and  scalped.  Captain  Gregg  was 
found  by  his  companions-in-arms,  and  car- 
ried back  to  the  fort,  where,  under  pro- 


82 


REGIXA  *,  OR, 


per  medical  treatment,  he  recovered,  and 
lived  many  years  afterward  without  a 
scalp." 

The  Rev.  Dr.  H.  Melchior  Muhlenberg, 
in  the  "Hallean  Annals,"  page  1006,  gives 
us  the  following  thrilling  account  of  an 
Indian  scalping  which  occurred  about 
the  time  of  the  Hartman  massacre.  He 
says : — 

"Among  my  catechumens  at  New  Hol- 
land were  the  two  grown  daughters  of  a 
man,  who,  after  the  confirmation  of  his 
children,  purchased  a  piece  of  land  near 
the  Blue  Mountains.  This  land,  by  much 
labor,  he  improved,  and  removed  his  family 
to  it.  But,  as  the  Indian  war  was  then 
raging  most  fearfully,  the  wild  and  fero- 
cious savages  frequently  fell  upon  the  iso- 
lated settlers,  set  fire  to  their  houses  and 
barns,  and  those  whom  they  did  not  massa- 
cre they  carried  into  captivity.  This  man, 
being  afraid  of  the  Indians,  brought  his 
family  back  to  New  Holland,  but  left  his 
cattle  and  grain  at  the  new  farm,  and  occa- 
sionally went  up  to  see  after  them.  In  the 
fall  of  the  year  this  man  went  up  to  the 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  80 


new  farm,  with  the  two  daughters  above- 
referred  to,  for  the  purpose  of  threshing 
the  grain  and  bringing  it  down  to  Xew 
Holland.  They  went  up,  did  the  thresh- 
ing, and  were  nearly  ready  to  return  with  a 
load  of  grain.  The  wagon  was  loaded  in 
the  evening,  and  on  Saturday  morning 
they  intended  to  start  for  home.  On  Fri- 
day evening  the  two  girls  seemed  to  be 
very  melancholy.  They  told  their  father 
that  they  felt  as  though  they  had  not  long 
to  live,  and  proposed  singing  the  German 
hymn,  commencing, — 

" 1  Wer  weiss  wie  nahe  mir  mein  ende?'  / 

In  English, — 

"  '  Who  knows  how  near  my  life's  expended? 

Time  flies,  and  death  is  hasting  on ; 
How  soon,  my  term  of  trial  ended, 

May  heave  my  last  expiring  groan  ! 
For  Jesus'  sake,  when  flesh  shall  fail, 
With  me,  0  God,  may  all  he  well ! 

"  '  My  many  sins  ! — oh,  vail  them  over 

With  merits  of  thy  dying  Son ! 
I  here  thy  richest  grace  discover, — 

Here  find  I  peace,  and  here  alone  : 
And,  for  his  sake,  when  flesh  shall  fail, 
With  me,  0  God,  may  it  be  well ! 


84 


regixa;  or, 


u  *  His  bleeding  wounds  give  me  assurance 
That  thy  free  mercy  will  abide ; 
Here  strength  I  find  for  death's  endurance, 

And  hope  for  all  I  need  beside: 
For  Jesus'  sake,  when  flesh  shall  fail, 
With  me,  0  God,  may  it  be  well  V" 

il  This  beautiful  hymn  they  sang  from  be- 
ginning  to  end ;  and  after  they  had  said 
their  prayers  they  retired  to  rest.  On 
Saturday  morning  they  rose  early  and  said 
their  prayers.  That  morning  the  sun  arose 
clear  and  bright.  It  was  a  calm  and  lovely 
morning ;  not  a  breath  of  air  wras  stirring. 
The  father  told  the  girls  that  they  should 
milk  the  cows,  while  he  would  go  out  into 
the  field  to  catch  the  horses  and  hitch 
them  up.  When  he  had  gone  into  a  large 
field,  he  stood  close  by  a  large  tree,  and 
was  looking  around  for  the  horses.  All 
at  once  he  saw  two  Indians  rushing 
upon  him  with  loaded  rifles  and  other 
deadly  weapons.  The  poor  man  was  so 
much  terrified  that  he  became  entirely 
powerless.  He  could  neither  move  hand 
or  foot,  nor  could  he  utter  a  word.  He  was 
stupefied  with  fear;  all  his  senses  seemed 
to  be  dead  but  his  vision.    He  saw  the 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  85 

savages  rapidly  approaching  ;  they  were 
now  within  about  twenty  paces  of  him. 
He  then  cried  out,  — '  0  Lord  Jesus,  to 
thee  I  lice!  0  Lord  Jesus,  to  thee  I  die!1 
but,  as  soon  as  he  had,  wTith  a  loud  voice, 
uttered  the  words,  'Lord  Jesus,'  the  In- 
dians stopped  suddenly,  like  a  bear  that  is 
shot; — they  stopped  short  and  commenced 
a  terrible  howling.  Scarcely  had  the  poor 
man  uttered  the  name  of  Jesus  when  he 
felt  a  supernatural  strength ;  he  felt  as 
though  he  had  wings,  turned  round  and 
ran  like  a  deer,  not  toward  his  house,  but 
toward  the  forest.  The  Indians  were  close 
behind  him,  and  quickened  their  steps,  be- 
ing sure  they  would  overtake  him  before  he 
would  get  out  of  the  field.  But  our  friend 
had  such  strength  that  he  jumped  like  a 
deer  over  the  fence;  and  when  in  the  forest 
he  ran  in  a  zigzag  or  serpentine  course,  and 
the  Indians  soon  lost  sight  of  him.  This 
was  a  narrow  escape.  The  Indians  then 
returned  to  his  house, — where  there  were 
a  number  of  other  Indians, —  and  there 
perpetrated  their  deeds  of  cruelty.  Out 
friend  then  bent  his  steps  to  a  neighbor- 
8 


86 


regixa;  or, 


ing  house,  where  two  German  families  re- 
sided, with  the  hope  of  procuring  help 
from  them  to  defend  his  children  and  pro- 
perty. But,  alas!  when  he  came  near  the 
house  he  heard  a  terrible  noise  and  cry- 
ing of  old  and  young,  and  soon  perceived 
that  a  party  of  Indians  were  then  engaged 
in  murdering  the  families.  Fortunate!} 
the  Indians  did  not  see  him.  He  now 
thought  of  his  own  children,  and  started 
for  his  own  house.  But,  alas!  when  he 
came  near  his  own  residence  he  saw  the 
flames  of  his  house  and  barn  rising  over 
the  tree-tops,  and  heard  the  terrible  bellow- 
ing of  his  cattle  that  were  burning  up 
alive.  He  then  ran  several  miles  back  to 
a  German  settlement  and  gave  the  alarm. 
The  men  soon  equipped  themselves  and 
came  with  him  to  his  house.  When  they 
reached  his  house  the  Indians  were  gone 
Mnd  every  thing  was  in  ashes.  His  eldest 
daughter  was  consumed,  all  but  a  few  frag- 
ments of  her  body;  but  the  second  daugh- 
ter, to  the  astonishment  of  all,  was  yet 
alive,  but  i  \c  and  gashed  from  head  to  foot 
with  the  tomahawk,  and  also  scalped.  The 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  87 

poor  girl  could  yet  inform  them  of  every 
thing  that  had  occurred,  and  how  many  In- 
dians there  were.  She  then  requested  her 
father  to  stoop  down  and  give  her  a  fare- 
well kiss,  then  she  would  go  to  her  dear 
Savior.  When  this  was  done  she  departed 
in  peace. 

"  The  poor  man  came  to  me,  and,  with 
deep  emotion  and  many  tears,  related  the 
whole  terrible  scene. 

"  He  also  spoke  in  wonder  of  the  power 
there  was  in  the  name  of  Jesus,  and  how 
he  had  now  experienced  the  sweetness  of 
that  dear  name,  and  that  he  would  never 
forget  it. 

"  I  showed  him  how  Jesus  would  de- 
liver him  out  of  more  terrible  dangers, 
even  from  sin,  death,  Satan,  and  hell, 
and  would  make  him  eternally  happy  in 
heaven." 

This  terrible  scene  will  prepare  us  for 
another  which  is  soon  to  follow.  What 
dangers  must  have  surrounded  those  early 
settlers  !  and  how  thankful  we  should  be  to 
our  heavenly  Father  for  the  peace  and 
safety  we  now  enjoy.    God  be  praised  for 


88 


regina;  ok, 


it!  Colonel  George  Washington  was  first 
brought  into  notice  during  the  period  of 
those  Indian  massacres.  The  terrible 
scenes  of  carnage  and  blood  in  Virginia, 
as  well  as  in  Pennsylvania,  awakened  the 
sj'mpathies  of  all  good  men  in  the  colonies; 
and  no  man  was  more  affected  by  the 
daily  massacres  that  occurred  than  Wash- 
ington, even  when  he  was  quite  a  young 
man.  He  was  born  on  the  22d  of  Febru- 
ary, 1732;  in  1752,  he  was  twenty  years 
old.  Let  it  be  borne  in  mind  that  at  that 
time  the  French — who  were  the  allies  of 
the  Indians  and  their  instigators  and  abet- 
tors in  all  their  cruelties  —  were  then  in 
possession  of  Canada  and  all  the  country 
now  composing  Ohio,  Michigan,  Indiana, 
Illinois,  Missouri,  Iowa,  Minnesota,  Arkan- 
sas, Mississippi,  Louisiana,  and  Kentucky. 
And  all  this  vast  territory  was  full  of  In- 
dians. Thus  the  English  colonies  were 
completely  surrounded  by  the  French  and 
Indians.  All,  therefore,  who  lived  on  the 
borders  of  the  States  were  in  danger  of 
the  Indians.  Nor  were  the  armies  of  the 
King  of  England  able  to  protect  such  an 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  89 


immense  frontier;  for  while  the  English 
army  was  repelling  the  Indians  at  one 
point  the  savages  would  break  in  upon 
another,  and,  before  help  could  arrive, 
tomahawk  and  scalp  all  who  would  come  in 
their  way.  Hence  it  was  absolutely  neces- 
sary that  private  military  companies  should 
be  formed  in  every  settlement  where  men 
enough  could  be  raised.  Forts,  too,  had  to 
be  erected  at  different  points,  into  which, 
in  time  of  danger,  the  poor  defenceless 
settlers  could  run  for  protection.  George 
Washington  was  placed  at  the  head  of  & 
company  of  this  kind,  called  the  Vir- 
ginia Rangers,  and  he  did  great  service  to 
his  poor  exposed  countrymen.  It  was  in 
this  noble  service  that  young  Washington 
learned  to  fight  the  battles  of  his  country — 
those  glorious  battles  which  liberated  our 
fathers  from  the  oppression  of  a  foreign 
king.  In  these  excursions  Colonel  Wash- 
ington frequently  witnessed  scenes  of  blood 
and  cruelty  such  as  are  enough  to  curdle 
one's  blood  and  cause  the  hair  to  stan<? 
erect  on  'ne's  heal.  We  will  give  one  of 
8* 


90 


regixa;  vr, 


those  dreadful  scenes,  from  "  Weems's  Life 
of  Washington."    Washington  says: — ■ 

"  One  day,  as  we  drew  near  a  dwelling, 
we  heard  the  report  of  a  gun.  Quickening 
our  pace,  we  saw  very  soon  what  were  a 
party  of  Indians,  loaded  with  plunder,  com- 
ing out  of  a  house,  which,  hy  the  smoke 
issuing  from  the  windows,  appeared  as  if 
just  set  on  fire.  On  rushing  into  the  house 
and  putting  out  the  fire,  we  saw  a  mournful 
sight  indeed  !  There  was  a  young-looking 
woman  lying  on  the  bed,  floating  in  her  own 
warm  blood!  Her  head  was  cleft  with  a 
tomahawk;  and  on  her  bosom  lay  two  lovely 
infants,  apparently  twins,  bathing  that  bosom 
with  the  crimson  current  of  life  yet  flowing 
from  their  deeply-gashed  heads !  I  had 
often  beheld  the  mangled  remains  of  my 
countrymen,  but  never  before  felt  as  I  did 
on  this  occasion.  This  sight  filled  my  mind 
with  horror!  On  tracing  the  footsteps  of 
the  savages  back  to  the  corn-field,  we  found 
a  small  boy,  and,  a  little  farther  on,  the 
father,  both  weltering  in  their  own  blood, 
tomahawked  and  scalped.  It  appeared, 
from  the  prints  of  his  little  feet  in  the  fur- 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  91 


rows,  that  the  child  had  been  following  his 
father,  who  was  plowing:  and,  seeing  his 
father  fall,  he  attempted  to  run  back  to  his 
mother,  but  was  overtaken  by  the  cruel 
savages  and  tomahawked  These  things  so 
affected  me  that  I  solemnly  declare  before 
God,  if  I  know  my  own  heart,  that  I 
would  offer  myself  a  sacrifice  to  these 
butchering  savages,  if  I  could  thereby  se- 
cure the  safety  of  these  my  distressed  coun- 
trymen." 

This  was  a  noble  sentiment,  worthy  of  the 
great  "  Father  of  his  Country." 

Scenes  like  these  were  of  common 
almost  daily  occurrence.  One  day  the  In- 
dians came  to  a  school-house,  where  there 
were,  I  think,  seventeen  little  children, 
who,  together  with  the  teacher,  were  all 
tomahawked  and  scalped.  This  school- 
house  was  in  Franklin  county,  Pennsyl- 
vania, about  four  miles  from  the  town  of 
Greencastle.  A  few  years  ago,  the  citizens 
raised  a  monument  on  the  spot  where  these 
dear  little  murdered  ones  sleep.  This  was 
noble  conduct! 

Thus  you  see  those  cruel  savages  spared 


regixa;  ok, 


neither  women  nor  children.  In  war,  too, 
these  savages  were  terrible  in  their  ferocity 
and  cruelty. 

When  Lord.  Suffolk,  in  the  House  of 
Lords  in  England,  in  1777,  tried  to  defend 
the  proposition  to  employ  the  American  In- 
dians in  the  war  with  the  colonies,  William 
Pitt,  or  Lord  Chatham, — who  was  one  of  the 
finest  orators  the  world  had  ever  seen, — op- 
posed it  in  the  following  language — lan- 
guage that  honors  the  head  and  the  heart 
of  that  great  statesman.  This,  too,  gives 
us  a  true  picture  of  Indian  cruelties.  Lord 
Suffolk  had  said,  in  debate,  that,  "besides 
its  policy  and  necessity,  the  measure  was 
also  allowable  on  principle,  and  that  it 
was  perfectly  justifiable  to  use  all  the 
means  that  God  and  nature  put  into  our 
hands."    To  this  Pitt  replied. — 

••I  am  astonished — yea,  shocked — to  hear 
such  principles  confessed, —  to  hear  them 
avowed  in  this  house  or  in  this  country : — 
principles  equally  unconstitutional,  inhu- 
man, and  unchristian  ! 

••My  lords.  I  did  not  intend  to  have 
encroached  again  upon  your  attention;  but 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  93 

I  cannot  repress  my  indignation.  I  feel 
myself  impelled  by  every  duty.  My  lords, 
we  are  called  upon,  as  members  of  this 
house,  as  men, — as  Christian  men, — to  pro- 
test against  such  notions  standing  near  the 
throne,  polluting  the  ear  of  majesty.  6  That 
God  and  nature  has  put  in  our  hands  V  I  know 
not  what  ideas  that  lord  may  entertain  of 
God  and  nature;  but  I  know  that  such 
abominable  principles  are  equally  abhorrent 
to  religion  and  humanity.  What!  to  attrib- 
ute the  sacred  sanction  of  God  and  nature 
to  the  massacres  of  the  Indian's  scalping- 
knife!  to  the  cannibal  savage  torturing, 
murdering,  roasting,  and  eating,  literally, 
my  lords,  the  mangled  victims  of  his  bar- 
barous battles !  Such  horrible  notions  shock 
every  precept  of  religion,  divine  or  natural, 
and  every  generous  feeling  of  humanity. 
And,  my  lords,  they  shock  every  sentiment 
of  honor;  they  shock  me,  as  a  lover  of 
honorable  war  and  a  detester  of  murderous 
barbarity. 

u  These  abominable  principles,  and  this 
more  abominable  avowal  of  them,  demand 
the  most  decisive  indignation.    I  call  upon 


94 


regina;  or, 


that  right  reverend  bench, —  those  holy 
ministers  of  the  gospel  and  pious  pastors 
of  our  church; — I  conjure  them  to  join  me 
in  this  holy  work  and  vindicate  the  religion 
of  their  God.  I  appeal  to  the  wisdom  and 
the  law  of  this  learned  bench  to  defend 
and  support  the  justice  of  their  country.  I 
call  upon  the  bishops  to  interpose  the  un- 
sullied sanctity  of  their  lawn,  upon  the 
learned  judges  to  interpose  the  purity  of 
their  ermine,  to  save  us  from  this  pollution. 
I  call  upon  the  honor  of  your  lordships  to 
reverence  the  dignity  of  your  ancestors  and 
to  maintain  your  own.  I  call  upon  the 
spirit  and  humanity  of  my  country  to  vin- 
dicate the  national  character.  I  invoke  the 
genius  of  the  Constitution.  From  the  tapes- 
try that  adorns  these  walls  the  immortal 
ancestor  of  this  noble  lord  frowns  with  in- 
dignation at  the  disgrace  of  his  country. 
In  vain  he  led  your  victorious  fleets  against 
the  boasted  'Armada'  of  Spain;  in  vain  he 
defended  and  established  the  honor,  the 
liberties,  the  religion, — the  Protestant  reli- 
gion,— of  this  country  against  the  arbitrary 
cruelties  of  Popery  and  the  Inquisition,  if 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  95 


these  more  than  Popish  cruelties  ar.d  in- 
quisitorial practices  are  let  loose  among  us ; 
to  turn  forth  into  our  settlements — among 
our  ancient  connections,  friends,  and  rela- 
tions—  the  merciless  cannibal  thirsting  for 
the  blood  of  man,  woman,  and  child !  To 
send  forth  the  infidel  savage  —  against 
whom  ?  Against  your  Protestant  brethren ; 
to  lay  waste  their  country,  to  desolate  their 
dwellings,  and  extirpate  their  race  and 
name,  with  these  horrible  hell-hounds  of 
savage  war!  —  hell-hounds,  I  say,  of  savage 
war!  Spain  armed  herself  with  bloodhounds 
to  extirpate  the  wretched  natives  of  America, 
and  we  improve  on  the  inhuman  example 
of  Spanish  cruelty; — wTe  turn  loose  these 
savage  hell-hounds  against  our  brethren 
and  countrymen  in  America  of  the  same 
language,  laws,  liberties,  and  religion,  en- 
deared to  us  by  every  tie  that  should  sanc- 
tify humanity ! 

"My  lords,  this  aw7ful  subject,  so  import- 
ant to  our  honor,  constitution,  and  our  reli- 
gion, demands  the  most  effectual  and  solemn 
inquiry.  And  I  again  call  upon  your  lord- 
ships, and  the  united  powers  of  the  state,  to 


96 


regixa;  or, 


examine  it  thoroughly  and  decisively,  and 
to  stamp  upon  it  the  indelible  stigma  of  the 
public  abhorrence.  And  I  again  call  upon 
those  prelates  of  our  holy  religion  to  do 
away  these  iniquities  from  among  us.  Let 
them  perform  a  lustration ;  let  them  purify 
this  house  and  this  nation  from  this  sin ! 

"  My  lords,  I  am  old  and  weak,  and  at 
present  unable  to  say  more;  but  nry  feel- 
ings and  indignation  were  too  strong  to 
have  said  less.  I  could  not  have  slept  this 
night  in  my  bed,  nor  reposed  my  head  upon 
my  pillow,  without  giving  this  vent  to  my 
eternal  abhorrence  of  such  preposterous  and 
enormous  principles." 

But  the  mighty  orator,  with  his  burning 
eloquence,  could  not  prevail.  The  law  was 
passed ;  and  the  murderous  tomahawk  and 
the  bloody  scalping-knife  of  the  American 
savages  were  employed  against  their  breth- 
ren. But  —  thank  God  !  —  our  noble  revo- 
lutionary sires  overcame  the  soldiers  of  the 
king  as  well  as  his  savage  allies. 

These  cruel  savages  have,  since  the  Revo- 
lution, been  severely  punished  for  the  inno- 
cent blood  they  shed.    The  blood  of  the 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  97 

poor  innocent  men,  women,  and  children 
vvhich  they  so  wantonly  shed  cried  to  God 
for  vengeance;  and  his  wrath  has  been 
poured  out  upon  them,  and  the  end  is  not 
yet  come.  They  have  been  driven  from 
the  land  of  their  fathers'  graves;  for,  like 
the  ancient  Canaanites,  they  were  not  fit  to 
live  in  it.  Thus  it  is  with  wicked  nations 
and  wicked  individuals :  God  punishes  them 
for  their  sins;  and  if  they  do  not  reform  he 
must  destroy  them,  as  he  did  the  Jews  and 
many  other  ancient  nations. 

"  Whatsoever  a  man  soweth  that  shall  he 
also  reap."  Ages  may  intervene  between 
the  perpetration  of  a  crime  and  its  punish- 
ment, but  it  will  come  at  last.  The  Jews, 
who  clamored  for  the  death  of  Christ,  said, 
"His  blood  be  upon  us  and  our  children!" 
This  impious  prayer  was  recorded  on  high, 
and  at  length  it  was  answered  in  the 
destruction  of  Jerusalem  and  the  terrible 
calamities  that  befell  the  whole  Jewish 
nation. 

But  it  is  time  we  should  return  to  the 
Hartman  family  and  see  what  is  going  on 

9 


98 


regixa;  or, 


there.  The}-  are  still  prosperous  and  every 
thing  going  on  well.  Oh  that  it  was  always 
so  ! 

John  Hartman  and  his  interesting  family 
were  growing  in  grace  day  by  day.  John 
himself,  during  the  summer,  had  become 
more  serious  and  heavenly-minded;  and, 
although  he  was  as  well  as  usual,  be  bad  a 
presentiment  that  he  would  be  called  away 
from  his  family.  He  was  now  only  forty- 
five  years  old,  and  bid  fair  to  live  many 
years,  as  his  wife  often  told  him  when  he 
expressed  his  fears  that  he  was  not  long  for 
this  world.  During  the  summer  he  had 
been  very  successful  on  his  farm ;  be  had 
abundant  crops.  The  autumn  had  come; 
the  forests  were  clothed  in  purple  and  gold, 
and  the  withered  leaves  were  beginning:  to 
strew  the  earth.  Nature  was  in  her  decay ; 
the  withered  leaf  and  the  decayed  grass  re- 
minded Hartman  of  his  own  state, — a  poor 
perishing  creature.  He  often  thought  of 
that  dreadful  passage  in  Isa.  lxiv.  6  : — "  We 
all  do  fade  as  a  leaf;"  which  reads  in  Ger- 
man, "  We  are  all  withered  like  leaves ;" 
and  Psalm  cii.  12,  in  German,  "  My  days 


HARTMAN'S  RETURN  FROM  HIS  DAY'S  LABOR. 

(98.) 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  00 


are  gone  like  a  shadow,  and  I  am  withered 
like  grass." 

There  was  something  peculiarly  solemn  to 
his  mind  in  the  autumn  of  the  year.  He 
would  spend  hours  in  deep  meditation 
when  gazing  upon  the  variegated  forest. 
The  work  was  rather  pressing  upon  him  at 
this  time;  October  had  come,  and  he  was 
not  yet  done  plowing  for  his  fall-seeding. 
Some  of  his  fields  were  seeded  and  others 
were  nearly  ready.  The  children,  too,  were 
now  busy  gathering  chestnuts,  and  hickory- 
nuts,  and  walnuts ;  and  Hartman  had  prom- 
ised the  children  that  as  soon  as  the  seed- 
ing was  over  George  might  take  them  down 
to  a  large  swamp,  where  there  were  a  great 
many  fine  large  shell  barks. 

One  day,  when  Hartman  was  out  in  the 
field,  one  of  his  nearest  neighbors— who 
had  been  over  the  Blue  Mountains  on  some 
business — stopped  a  while  to  talk  with  him, 
and,  among  other  things,  informed  him 
that  the  Indians  had  been  about,  and  had 
committed  a  number  of  horrible  murders 
all  around  them,  and  that  lie  had  seen 
old  Conrad  Weiser  at  Heidelberg ;  and  he 


100 


EEC  in  a;  or, 


advised  him  and  all  the  people  that  lived 
over  the  mountains  either  to  move  out 
of  the  settlement  or  to  erect  a  temporary 
fort 

But  poor  Hartman  did  not  believe  that 
the  Indians  would  harm  any  person  who 
had  never  done  them  any  harm.  He  used 
to  say,  when  he  heard  of  Indians,  that  "  it 
was  only  the  drunken  Irish  killing  one 
another."  So  he  paid  no  attention  to  the 
advice  of  his  neighbor. 

Thus  thing's  passed  on  until  the  storm 
came.  On  the  morning  of  the  day  on 
which  the  dreadful  calamity  occurred,  John 
Hartman  had  been  more  than  usually  fer- 
vent and  solemn  in  his  family  devotions. 
He  committed  himself  and  his  dear  family 
into  the  hands  of  God.  "  Keep  us  this  day 
from  harm  and  danger;  nevertheless,  not 
our  will,  but  thine,  be  done."  At  the  break- 
fast-table his  wife  said. — 

"  AVell.  John,  you  know  the  flour  is  all 
out,  and  some  one  must  go  to  the  mill ;  and, 
as  you  are  at  the  last  field,  suppose  you  let 
Christian  go.  and  I  will  go  with  him  ;  for  I 
have  long  since  promised  to  go  over  and 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  101 


see  Mrs.  Svvartz,  who  you  know  has  been 
sick." 

"Well,"  Hartman  replied,  "if  you  think 
he  can  ride  the  old  horse  on  a  hag,  1  have 
no  objections ;  then  George  and  I  can  finish 
the  seeding  to-day.  But  you  must  see  that 
the  miller  divides  the  flour  right  and  puts 
it  on  the  horse  even." 

Little  Christian  was  of  course  delighted 
with  the  idea  of  riding  the  old  horse  to  the 
mill.  The  arrangements  between  Christian 
and  his  mother  were  that  she  was  to  ride 
the  horse  to  the  mill,  (for  the  wheat  was 
already  at  the  mill,)  and  the  little  hoy  was 
to  ride  behind  her ;  coming  home,  the  mo- 
ther, who  was  a  very  stout  and  active  wo- 
man, was  to  walk,  and  Christian  was  to 
ride  on  the  meal-bag,  and  the  mother  was 
to  lead  the  horse  over  the  rough  places.  So, 
after  the  work  was  done  and  the  mother 
had  given  her  directions  to  the  girls,  Barbara 
and  Regina,  about  cooking  the  dinner,  and 
promising  to  he  hack  before  supper,  they 
started  oiF. 

Mrs.  Hartman  did  not  spend  much  time 
at  her  toilet.    The  women  in  the  country 

9* 


102 


REGINA  ;  OR, 


in  those  clays  wore  very  plain  clothes.  A 
clean  woolen  petticoat,  with  a  red  ground 
and  a  white  stripe,  and  a  short-gown  of  lin- 
sey-woolsey cross-barred  with  red  and  green, 
and  a  neat  plain  cap  without  frill  or  lace, 
and  a  red  linen  handkerchief  over  her 
bosom;  for  in  those  days  the  country-peo- 
ple had  no  calico  or  gingham. 

In  going  to  the  mill  she  had  to  pass  the 
field  where  her  husband  was  at  work.  She 
waited  until  he  came  up  to  the  fence,  and 
they  had  some  conversation.  Little  did 
those  unfortunate  parents  think  that  this 
would  be  the  last  conversation  they  would 
ever  hold  in  this  world.  God,  for  wise 
purposes,  has  hidden  the  future  from  our 
eyes.  How  true  it  is  that  we  know  not 
what  a  day  may  bring  forth ! 

"Live!  live  to-day;  to-morrow  never  yet 
On  any  human  being  rose  or  set." 

What  a  blessing  it  is  that  we  are  not  per- 
mitted to  lift  the  dark  vail  of  the  future  to 
see  our  own  destiny!  how  wretched  and 
miserable  it  would  make  us  !  If,  like  John 
Hartman,  we  have  made  our  peace,  calling, 
and  election  sure,  and  have  our  lamps 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  103 

trimmed,  we  need  not  fear  the  coming  of 
the  Son  of  man. 

The  girls  were  busy  in  the  house ;  and  at 
noon,  when  the  dinner  was  nearly  ready, 
Barbara  took  down  the  great  tin  horn  and 
blewT  it.  The  men  heard  the  horn  and  im- 
mediately obeyed  its  welcome  summons. 
When  George  and  his  father  had  watered 
and  fed  the  horses,  they  went  into  the  house 
and  sat  down  to  dinner.  While  they  were 
at  dinner,  the  dog,  Wasser,  came  running 
into  the  house  at  a  furious  rate,  and  seemed 
to  be  terribly  frightened.  He  was  a  brave, 
noble  dog,  and  very  fierce,  and  seemed  to 
be  afraid  of  nothing.  As  soon  as  Hartman 
saw  the  terror  of  the  dog,  he  knew  that 
something  unusual  had  occurred;  and,  wTith 
the  ready  instinct  of  an  old  hunter,  he  sprang 
for  his  trusty  rifle,  which  was  always  loaded, 
and  hung  on  two  crooked  pins  over  the  bed. 
He  looked  at  the  priming-pan  and  found  all 
was  right.  He  then  spoke  to  the  dog,  which 
at  once  obeyed  him ;  but  when  he  got  to  the 
door  he  stood  still,  bristling  up  and  growl- 
ing in  a  fierce  and  terrible  manner.  Han 
man  could  not  yet  see  what  it  was;  but  he 


104 


REGINA J  OR, 


gave  the  word  of  command,  which  the  faith- 
ful dog  well  understood,  and  the  next  mo- 
ment he  sprang  upon  a  huge  Indian  and 
brought  him  to  the  ground.  Hartman  then 
came  to  the  door,  and  just  as  he  was  stepping 
over  the  threshold  he  received  two  riHe 
halls,  one  through  the  head,  the  other  through 
the  heart,  and  immediately  fell  a  dead  man. 
The  Indians  then  got  at  the  dog  with  their 
tomahawks,  and,  though  he  fought  like  a 
tiger,  and  bit  and  wounded  a  number  of  the 
Indians,  yet  he  was  killed  at  last.  Xoble  dog ! 
he  deserved  a  better  fate.  Instantly  George 
sprang  to  his  father  and  tried  to  raise  him 
up ;  for  the  poor  boy  could  not  yet  fully 
realize  what  had  taken  place.  As  he  was 
standing  over  his  father  the  Indians  closed 
around  him,  and  one  of  them  sank  his  mur- 
derous tomahawk  into  his  head.  The  brave 
boy  fell  upon  the  dying  body  of  his  father, 
and  both  father  and  son  were  soon  in  the 
arms  of  death.  Fifteen  large  Indians,  all 
painted  and  feathered  for  scenes  of  carnage 
and  blood,  then  rushed  into  the  house,  yell- 
ing most  hideously,  like  so  many  fiends  from 
the  infernal  regions. 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  105 


One  can  scarcely  imagine  what  the  feel- 
ings of  the  poor  girls  were  during  this 
awful ly  terrific  scene.  Barbara  ran  up  into 
the  loft  and  hid  herself,  but  a  cruel  savage 
followed  her  and  brought  her  back.  Re- 
gina  was  horrified,  and  cried  out  in  Ger- 
man, at  the  top  of  her  voice,  uHerr  Jesus! 
Herr  Jesus  /"  When  the  Indians  heard  that 
sound,  they  seemed  terror-stricken  for  a 
moment.  One  of  them,  however,  could 
speak  a  little  French ;  but  Regina  could 
not  understand  a  word  he  said.  But 
by  his  gestures  she  understood  he  wanted 
liquor.  His  name  was,  as  she  afterward 
learned,  Hammaoslu,  which  means  a  "  ti- 
ger's claw."  This  huge  and  hideous  half- 
naked  savage  seemed  to  be  the  chief  of  the 
brutal  gang.  He  caught  hold  of  Regina  with 
his  left  hand  and  shook  her  most  violently, 
while  he  held  a  seal  ping-knife  in  his  right 
hand,  which  he  drew  over  her  lips,  which 
she  understood  was,  that  she  should  be 
quiet.  But  she  thought  her  last  moment 
had  come.  The  Indians  then  went  to  the 
table — all  but  one  who  stood  at  the  door  as 
sentinel.    When  they  had  eaten  up  all  the 


106 


regina;  or, 


bread  and  meat  and  potatoes,  they  motioned 
to  the  girls  tor  more ;  and  when  Barbara 
went  ont  toward  the  spring-house  for  bread 
and  pies,  two  of  the  Indians  followed  her. 
They  ate  a  prodigious  quantity.  When 
they  had  filled  themselves,  they  imme- 
diately commenced  plundering  the  house ; 
chests  were  broken  open,  drawers  were 
emptied,  every  thing  was  ransacked.  They 
took  linens  and  woolens,  blankets  and 
sheets  and  coverlets,  and  tied  them  up  in 
bundles.  They  made  some  six  or  seven 
bundles.  They  then  took  Barbara  and  Re- 
gina out.  It  was  then  that  the  Hartman  girls 
saw  for  the  first  time  a  dear  sweet  little  girl, 
about  three  years  old,  tied  fast  to  the  fence. 
They  were  taken  in  the  same  direction,  and 
were  permitted  to  go  to  her.  "When  the 
poor  little  child  saw  them,  she  wept,  and 
said,  in  German,  "  Oh,  mama,  mama!  wo  ist 
mei  mutter?" — "  Oh,  mamma,  mamma !  where 
is  my  mother  ?"  The  girls  then  saw  that  she 
too  was  a  little  German  captive.  She  could 
only  tell  her  first  or  Christian  name,  which 
was  Susan,  or,  as  she  said,  Suse.  But  more 
of  this  littlfc  captive  hereafter.   The  Indians 


TRUE  piety  among  the  lowly.  107 


had  not  yet  completed  their  work  of  ruin ; 
the  house  and  barn  must  be  laid  in  ashes. 
The  way  they  set  fire  to  the  house  wTas  this  : 
there  was  a  large  quantity  of  flax  up-stairs ; 
this  they  threw  down,  and  built  a  fire  by 
placing  chairs  and  benches  and  drawers 
upon  it.  This  was  near  the  partition.  They 
then  took  a  firebrand  from  the  hearth.  Soon 
the  whole  house  was  in  flames.  When  the 
fire  was  fairly  underway,  one  of  them  took  a 
brand  and  set  fire  to  the  barn ;  and  soon  all 
the  result  of  John  Hartman's  labors,  to- 
gether with  his  own  body  and  that  of  his 
son  George,  were  in  ashes.  While  the 
flames  were  raging,  the  Indian  who  had 
been  inj  ured  by  the  dog  took  the  dead  ani- 
mal by  the  hind-legs  and  tossed  him  into 
the  fire,  whereupon  they  all  set  up  a  kind 
of  a  war-dance,  singing,  shouting,  and  yell- 
ing, at  a  most  fearful  rate,  the  poor  girls 
all  the  while  expecting  that  they  would  fall 
next  beneath  the  murderous  tomahawk. 
They  were  spared  from  immediate  death, 
but  met  a  fate  very  little  better.  At  the 
conclusion  of  this  horrible  chapter,  perhaps 
eome  of  the  readers  will  ask,  Why  did  God 


108 


rbgina;  or, 


permit  such  a  terrible  calamity  to  fall  upon 
Bach  an  excellent  family?  We  can  only 
answer  this  question  l>y  stating  that  God's 
ways  are  past  finding  out ;  his  ways  are  not 
as  our  ways,  nor  are  his  thoughts  like  ours. 
We  might,  with  the  same  propriety,  ask, 
Why  did  he  permit  his  ancient  prophets  to 
be  slain  by  the  wicked  ?  why  did  he  per- 
mit the  wicked  Jews  to  stone  Stephen  to 
death  ?  or  why  has  he  permitted  the  wicked 
in  every  age  to  persecute  his  people  ?  For 
the  same  reason  that  he  permits  the  sun  to 
rise  upon  the  evil  and  the  good,  he  also  per- 
mits calamities  to  fall  upon  the  good  as  well 
as  the  evil. 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  100 


CHAPTER  V. 

THE  WIDOW  AND  HER  ONLY  SON — ALL  THAT  IS 
LEFT  OF  A  ONCE  HAPPY  AND  PROSPEROUS 
FAMILY. 

We  last  saw  Mrs.  Hartman  on  the  old 
horse,  with  little  Christian  behind  her,  on 
their  way  to  the  mill,  talking  with  John 
Hartman  at  the  fence.  Ah,  little  did  this 
unfortunate  family  think  this  wTould  be 
the  last  time  they  w7ould  ever  meet  in  this 
life !  Little  did  Mrs.  Hartman  think  that 
when  she  left  her  dear  husband  she  should 
never  see  him  again  in  this  world  !  When 
she  turned  round  the  corner  of  the  field, 
and  saw  the  smoke  gracefully  ascending 
from  the  chimney  of  her  happy  home,  little 
did  she  expect  to  find  it  a  heap  of  ashes  on 
her  return  !  But  so  it  was ;  such  was  the 
cup  of  sorrow  this  good  and  holy  woman 
was  called  upon  to  drink. 

10 


110 


regixa;  or, 


Mrs.  Hartman  went  on  to  the  mill,  and, 
according  to  arrangements,  she  spent  the 
day  with  the  miller's  wife,  who  had  heen 
very  sick,  hut  was  now  improving.  The 
miller  and  his  wife  had  also  come  from 
Germany;  and  although  they,  too,  were 
members  of  the  Lutheran  church,  yet  they 
had  very  little  experimental  knowledge  of 
religion.  The  severe  attack  of  illness  had 
a  very  happy  effect  upon  the  miller's  wife, 
and  she  was,  therefore,  delighted  with  Mrs. 
Hartman' s  visit,  for  she  knew  her  to  be  a 
serious,  God-fearing  woman ;  and  although 
she  once  thought  her  rather  too  severe  in 
her  religion,  yet  she  now  rejoiced  in  the  op- 
portunity of  conversing  with  her  on  hea- 
venly things.  They,  therefore,  had  quite  a 
pleasant  meeting;  and  Mrs.  Hartman  was 
as  much  edified  in  imparting  instruction  as 
the  other  woman  was  in  receiving  it.  Thus 
"he  that  watereth  shall  himself  be  watered." 
Mrs.  Hartman  loved,  on  proper  occasions, 
to  talk  about  her  Savior  Jesus  Christ,  or,  as 
she  used  to  call  him,  "  mein  lieber  Heiland," 
or,  "  my  dear  Savior."  She  loved  to  mag- 
nify his  grace. 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  Ill 


She  used  to  sing  with  deep  emotion,  with 
her  strong,  elear  voice,  that  beautiful  Ger- 
man hymn,  beginning — 

"  0 !  dass  ich  tausend  zungen  hatte  j" 

which  reads  thus  in  English : — 

"Ob,  that  I  had  a  thousand  voices  ! 

A  mouth  to  speak  with  thousand  tongues ! 
Then  with  a  heart  his  praise  rejoices, 

Would  I  proclaim  in  grateful  songs, 
To  all,  wherever  I  might  be, 
What  the  good  Lord  has  done  for  me. 

"  What  equal  praises  can  I  offer, 

Dear  Jesus,  for  thy  mercy  shown  ? 

What  pangs,  my  Savior,  didst  thou  suffer, 
And  thus  for  all  my  sins  atone ! 

Thy  death  alone  my  soul  could  free 

From  Satan,  to  be  blest  with  thee." 

This  wras  one  of  her  favorite  hymns,  and 
she  could  sing  it  "with  the  spirit  and  the 
understanding,"  too. 

While  they  were  seated  at  the  dinner- 
table,  she,  for  the  first  time,  felt  a  strange 
and  unaccountable  sensation.  Home  rushed 
most  vividly  into  her  mind,  and  she  felt 
very  uneasy,  and  said  she  was  afraid  some- 
thing had  happened,  and  that  she  would 


112 


regina;  or, 


immediately  go  home;  but  the  miller  and 
Lis  wife  talked  her  our  of  it.  She  re- 
mained, therefore,  until  toward  evening, 
but  did  not  seem  to  be  as  cheerful  and 
happy  as  she  had  been  in  the  morning. 

At  length,  about  four  o'clock  in  the  after- 
noon, she  had  the  grist  put  on  the  horse, 
and  little  Christian,  with  the  help  of  the 
miller,  who  took  him  by  the  leg,  mounted 
the  bag.  Mrs.  Hartman  walked  before. 
Little  Christian  knew  how  to  ride,  aud 
how  to  guide  the  horse :  but  riding  on  a 
meal-bag  was  a  strange  business  to  him, 
and  every  now  and  then  he  would  call  for 
his  mother  to  pull  the  bag  over  to  one  side 
or  the  other.  At  length  they  were  ap- 
proaching the  end  of  the  forest  on  the  bor- 
ders of  their  farm.  Xow.  the  house  and 
barn  were  so  situated  that  as  soon  as  you 
would  get  out  of  the  forest  they  would  be 
the  first  objects  that  would  strike  the  sight. 
TThen  Mrs,  Hartman.  therefore,  came  to- 
ward the  opening,  she  saw  smoke  ascending 
in  large,  heavy,  dark  columns.  She  was  at  a 
loss  to  know  what  it  meant.  She  hastened 
her  steps,  and.  when  she  came  to  the  edge  of 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  113 


the  forest,  looked  for  the  house.  For  a 
moment  she  was  bewildered,  and  scarcely 
thought  any  thing.  At  length  she  swept 
her  eyes  over  the  whole  clearing  from 
forest  to  forest,  but  no  house  met  her  view. 
She  then  thought  that  perhaps  she  had  taken 
the  wrong  road  and  got  into  another  clear- 
ing. But  no ;  this  could  not  be ; — there  were 
the  well-known  trees ;  there  was  the  great 
and  beautiful  pine-tree  that  stood  close  to 
the  house,  through  whose  lofty  branches 
she  had  so  often  heard  the  gentle  winds 
sighing ;  there  were  the  well-known  fields  ; 
there  was  their  lane,  and  there  was  the 
orchard.  She  was  still  perplexed,  when 
little  Christian  called  out, — 

"Why,  mother,  where  is  our  house?" 

Just  then  the  truth  began  to  flash  upon 
her  mind.  The  house  and  barn  had  caught 
fire  and  burned  down.  She  immediately 
commenced  running,  and  never  stopped  till 
she  was  in  the  yard.  But  where  was  John, 
and  George,  and  Barbara,  and  Regina?  they 
were  not  there ;  what  had  become  of  them  ? 
Perfectly  overcome,  she  sat  down  on  a  log 
near  the  gate  to  try  and  collect  her 
10* 


114 


kegixa;  or, 


thoughts.  What  a  dreadful  situation  for 
a  woman,  a  wife,  a  mother,  to  be  in ! — the 
awful  ruins  around  her,  and  the  dreadful, 
the  agonizing  suspense !  She  called  for 
her  husband,  her  children,  but  she  heard 
nothing  save  the  echo  of  her  own  tremu- 
lous voice.  She  then  looked  toward  the 
house,  and  there  she  saw  blood,  (it  was  the 
blood  of  "Wasser;)  then  the  Indian  massa- 
cres, of  which  she  had  often  heard,  rushed 
into  her  mind,  and  she  concluded  that  her 
whole  family  was  murdered.  What  was  to 
be  done  now  ?  She  raised  her  heart  to  God 
in  prayer.  God  heard  her  and  gave  her 
strength.  When  Christian  came  up  she 
took  the  ba^  from  the  horse  and  set  it 
down  by  the  great  pine-tree,  but  could  not 
answer  the  many  questions  that  little  Chris- 
tian asked  her.  What  to  do  she  did  not 
know.  At  length  she  made  up  her  mind 
that  she  would  take  the  horse  and  ride 
over  to  their  nearest  neighbor's,  which  was 
about  three  miles  over  a  considerable  hill. 
But  what  was  to  be  done  with  little  Chris- 
tian ?  She  concluded  to  take  him  on  behind. 
She  started  and  rode  as  rapidly  as  she  could 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  115 


through  the  woods.  When  she  reached  the 
house  she  was  so  excited  and  overwhelmed 
that  for  some  time  she  could  not  tell  them 
what  was  wrong.  It  was  now  nearly  dark. 
But  the  man  of  the  house  and  his  son 
(nearly  a  man  grown)  said  they  would  go 
over  and  see  how  things  looked.  Early  in 
the  morning  the  few  neighbors  in  the  set- 
tlement were  all  apprised  of  the  terrible 
calamity,  and  all  gathered  around  the 
smoking  ruins  of  John  Hartman's  once 
pleasant  home.  The  neighbors  were  very 
kind  to  the  poor  widow.  The  rubbish  was 
removed  from  the  smoking  ruins,  and  only 
two  skeletons  were  found.  This,  together 
with  the  fact  that  fifteen  Indians  with  three 
girls  were  seen  that  evening  by  a  man  who 
was  coming  up  the  mountain,  led  them  to  the 
conclusion  that  Hartman  and  his  son  George 
had  been  massacred  by  the  Indians,  and 
that  Barbara  and  Begina  were  carried  into 
captivity.  This  captivity  was  more  terrible 
than  even  death  itself. 

Mrs.  Hartman  was  deeply  distressed  for  her 
husband  and  her  children ;  but,  as  she  knew 
that  "  our  light  afflictions,  wdiich  are  but  for 


116 


regina;  or, 


a  moment,  shall  work  out  for  us  a  far  more 
exceeding  and  eternal  weight  of  glory," 
she  put  her  trust  in  God,  and  used  to  say, 
"  Though  he  slay  me,  yet  will  I  put  my  trust 
in  him."  Though  she  was  a  very  pious  wo- 
man "before,  these  severe  afflictions  brought 
her  nearer  to  God  her  Savior. 

The  neighbors  at  once  agreed  that  they 
would  build  her  another  house,  and  actu- 
ally met  a  few  days  after  and  put  her  up  a 
right  comfortable  little  dwelling.  The  kind 
neighbors  also  gave  her  bedclothes  and  fur- 
niture, and  did  every  thing  they  could  to 
make  her  comfortable.  Some  men  met  one 
day  and  cut  her  winter's  wood ;  and  thus 
God  supplied  her  wants.  But  still  she  was 
not  happy.  The  fate  of  her  dead  husband 
and  son  she  could  have  borne ;  but  the  terri- 
ble condition  of  Barbara  and  her  beloved 
Eegina, — this  was  more  than  human  nature 
could  endure.  In  worldly  matters  she  fared 
well  enough,  but  her  wounded  heart  would 
not  be  comforted.  If  she  could  only  hear 
something  of  her  poor  lost  daughters, — yea, 
if  she  could  only  hear  that  they  were  dead, — 
it  would  be  a  great  relief  to  her  mind ;  she 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  117 


could  then  calmly  submit  to  the  will  of 
God.  But  she  could  hear  nothing  of  her  chil- 
dren. Many  were  the  inquiries  she  made. 
Often  she  crossed  the  Blue  Mountains  to 
see  the  Rev.  Nicholas  Kurtz  and  Conrad 
Weiser,  to  learn  something  of  her  children ; 
but  all  in  vain.  But  from  time  to  time,  as 
she  heard  of  children  that  were  taken  by 
the  English  soldiers  from  the  Indians,  she 
would  always  go  and  see  if  her  lost  children 
were  among  them. 

She  had  loved  all  her  children  with  a 
warmth  of  affection  which  only  a  loving 
mother's  heart  can  know;  but  somehow  or 
other  Regina  had  so  wound  herself  around 
the  heart  of  her  mother  that  she  could  never 
give  her  up.  She  thought  of  her  all  the 
day  long ;  and  at  night,  when  she  lay  upon 
her  bed,  she  would  dream  of  her  lost  Re- 
gina. Once  she  dreamed  that  Regina  had 
returned  safe  and  sound.  She  ran  to  em- 
brace her,  and  uttered  such  a  terrible  scream 
of  rejoicing  that  it  awoke  her,  and  to  her 
great  sorrow  she  found  it  was  only  a  dream ! 
Sometimes,  too,  in  her  imagination,  she 
would  hear  the  clear  and  joyful  voice  of 


118 


regina;  or, 


Regina,  as  it  used  to  ring  out  around  the 
beloved  home. 

Nine  long  and  tedious  years  rolled  tardily 
along,  and  yet  no  tidings  of  her  lost  Regina. 
Time  could  not  heal  the  wounds  afflictions 
like  these  had  made  upon  her  heart.  But 
as  every  thing  in  this  world  has  an  end,  so, 
too,  the  long  dream  of  agony  had  its  termi- 
nation, and  hope  and  happiness  once  more 
dawned  upon  the  withered  heart  of  the  lone 
widow  in  her  forest  home. 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  119 


CHAPTER  VI. 

T  H*E  CAPTIVITY. 

IN  WHICH  WE  HAVE  AN  ACCOUNT  OF  WHAT  BEFELL  THE 
POOR  GIRLS  BARBARA  AND  REGINA,  AND  THE  HARD- 
SHIPS THE  CAPTIVES  ENDURED  AMONG  THE  INDIANS. 

"We  last  saw  Barbara  and  Regina  stand- 
ing near  the  fence  talking  with  little  Susan, 
while  their  fathers'  house  and  barn  were 
burning  and  the  Indians  were  dancing  in 
hellish  glee  around.  When  the  fire  had 
fairly  laid  hold  of  part  of  the  house  and  barn, 
and  the  flames  were  rising  higher  and  higher, 
they  gathered  up  their  plunder  and  drove 
their  captives  before  them,  one  of  them 
taking  the  lead.  The  leader's  name  was 
Pottowasnos,  which  means,  in  the  Indian 
language,  "the  Boat-pusher."  This  was  a 
great  brawny  fellow;  he  took  long  steps, 
and  walked  so  fast  that  the  children,  as 


120 


regina;  or, 


well  as  some  of  the  Indians  who  had  short 
legs,  had  often  to  run  in  order  to  keep  up 
with  him.  Each  one,  except  the  chief,  car- 
ried a  bundle  of  plunder.  Barbara  and 
Regina  had  also  to  carry  a  load.  They  had 
nothing  on  their  heads  or  feet.  The  little 
girl  Susan,  too,  was  bareheaded  and  bare- 
footed. After  they  had  traveled  about  an 
hour  and  a  half,  the  little  girl  could  run  no 
more,  having  cried  herself  almost  out  of 
breath,  and  her  little  feet  being  wounded 
with  the  sharp  stones  over  which  they  had 
to  pass.  At  length  she  fell  down ;  the  In- 
dian that  was  next  to  her  behind  came  up 
to  her  and  gave  her  a  kick  or  two  and 
raised  her  to  her  feet,  but  she  soon  fell  to  the 
ground  again.  "When  she  fell  the  second 
time  one  of  the  Indians  gave  a  terrible  yell, 
and  they  all  stopped.  This  was  the  first 
halt  that  had  been  made.  As  soon  as  they 
halted  they  all  came  and  stood  around  the 
poor  child.  One  of  the  Indians  then  took 
her  by  the  arms  and  placed  her  on  her  feet, 
but  she  fell  again.  He  then  raised  her  up 
again,  and  drew  his  tomahawk  from  his  belt 
behind,  and  was  just  about  to  bury  it  in  her 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  121 


head,  when  the  chief  cried  out  in  a  terrible 
voice,  no  doubt  commanding  him  to  desist. 
Other  arrangements  were  then  made.  Bar- 
bara had  to  take  Regina's  load  in  addition 
to  her  own ;  and  Regina,  though  but  a 
child  herself,  had  to  carry  Susan.  These 
arrangements  having  been  made,  they 
started  oiF  again.  And  it  was  well  for  poor 
Regina  that  it  was  near  night,  for  if  she 
wrould  have  had  to  carry  the  child  very  for 
she  would  certainly  have  sunk  under  her 
burden.  But  when  it  became  dark,  Regina 
put  the  little  girl  down  on  the  ground,  and 
took  her  by  the  hand  and  helped  her  along; 
in  this  way  they  got  along  very  well.  They 
traveled  on  till  near  midnight;  and,  at  last, 
they  came  to  a  halt  on  the  banks  of  a  little 
stream. 

They  built  a  fire  and  cooked  their  sup- 
per, which  consisted  of  new  corn,  which 
they  had  brought  along.  They  had  the 
corn  in  a  bag;  it  was  a  kind  of  hominy,  or 
dried  corn.  This,  together  with  some  of 
the  bread  they  had  brought  from  Hart- 
man's,  constituted  their  supper.  They  ate 
several  kettles-full;  and  when  they  were 
11 


122 


regixa;  or, 


done  eating  they  motioned  to  the  girls  to 
go  to  the  kettle  and  eat.  The  children  also 
picked  up  some  pieces  of  bread.  They 
were  very  hungry,  especially  little  Susan, 
who  had  not  eaten  any  thing  since  morning 
but  a  few  apples  she  had  picked  up  while 
passing  through  Hartman's  orchard. 

When  the  Indians  were  done  eating  they 
sat  around  the  fire  and  had  a  long  talk  and 
smoked  their  pipes,  no  doubt  recounting 
the  horrid  achievements  of  the  day.  They 
also  had  some  liquor  in  flasks,  which  they 
called  "lum," — meaning,  no  doubt,  rum, — 
of  which  they  partook  very  freely,  and  then 
slunk  away  to  places  of  repose.  The  girls 
were  also  motioned  to  lie  down.  The  Hart- 
man  girls  lay  down,  with  little  Susan,  un- 
der a  thick  laurel-bush  ;  and,  as  one  bundle 
they  had  consisted  of  several  blankets  and  a 
coverlet,  they  opened  them  out  and  covered 
themselves  with  them.  Thus  they  had  a 
pleasant  sleep.  But  this  good  fortune  did 
not  always  follow  them.  Barbara  and  little 
Susan  soon  fell  asleep,  but  Regina  could 
not  close  an  eye.  She  thought  of  her  mur- 
dered father  and  brother,  and  of  her  dear 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  123 

absent  mother.  She  cried  enough  to  break 
her  poor  heart,  and  at  last  fell  asleep,  but 
only  to  be  disturbed  by  the  awful  visions 
of  the  horrid  and  bloody  scene  she  had  wit- 
nessed during  that  eventful  day. 

In  the  morning  the  Indians  rose  pretty 
early,  and  some  of  them  took  their  guns 
and  went  out  to  shoot  game.  They  soon 
returned  with  a  large  wild  turkey  and  a 
number  of  squirrels.  These  were  cooked 
for  breakfast ;  soon  after  which  they  started 
again.  They  kept  in  the  forest  nearly  all 
day;  and  hard  indeed  was  the  fate  of  the 
poor  girls.  Their  feet  became  very  sore,  so 
that  they  could  scarcely  walk,  yet  they  had 
to  go  or  be  tomahawked.  Sometimes  Re- 
gina  carried  little  Susan,  and  sometimes  she 
led  her  by  the  hand. 

At  noon  the  Indians  came  to  a  halt  on  a 
large  stream  of  water,  which  was  no  doubt 
the  North  Branch  of  the  Susquehanna 
Eiver.  Thence  they  traveled  day  after 
day  up  the  river,  through  wet  and  through 
dry,  for  it  rained  for  several  days. 

When  they  had  been  on  this  dreary  jour- 
ney some  five  or  six  days,  poor  Barbara  took 


124 


regina;  or, 


sick.  Her  feet  were  wounded  and  swollen 
and  inflamed,  so  that  she  was  thrown  into  a 
severe  fever.  Toward  evening  she  told  Re- 
gina that  she  could  go  no  farther,  and  that  she 
would  rather  die  than  to  suffer  any  longer 
as  she  had  done.  But  Regina  still  encour- 
aged her,  and  even  carried  both  the  bun- 
dles. The  Indians  halted  somewhat  earlier 
that  day,  or  Barbara  would  certainly  have 
given  out.  As  soon  as  they  stopped  she 
lay  down  on  the  cold,  damp  earth,  which  in- 
creased her  fever.  She  could  eat  nothing 
that  evening,  and  at  night  she  could  not 
sleep.  She  became  deranged,  and  frequent- 
ly alarmed  poor  Regina,  who  had  never  seen 
any  person  in  the  delirium  of  a  high  fever. 
About  midnight  she  called  for  water,  and 
poor  Regina  did  not  know  how  to  get  it; 
she  was  afraid  if  she  would  rise  to  go  for 
water  the  Indians  would  shoot  her.  But 
Barbara  still  called  for  water.  At  length 
Regina  rose  up  and  went  toward  the  fire, 
where  there  was  a  tin  cup,  which  she  took 
to  the  Indian  who  was  on  guard,  and 
pointed  to  her  sister  and  then  toward  the 
river.    He  nodded.    So  she  went  and  got 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  125 

her  a  drink.  After  she  had  drank,  she  be- 
came more  quiet;  but  in  the  morning  her 
feet  and  legs  were  so  swollen,  and  she  was 
so  weak,  that  she  could  not  stand.  Poor 
Regina  tried  to  help  her  up,  but  she  would 
sink  down  again.  While  Regina  was  try- 
ing to  help,  her  up,  some  of  the  brutal 
savages  noticed  the  scene  and  laughed  at 
the  poor  sick  girl.  Oh,  what  cruelty  !  what 
inhuman  monsters  they  were!  One  of 
them  even  went  up  to  the  poor  sick  girl, 
and  raised  her  up  several  times  only  to  see 
her  fall.  Barbara  was  so  weak,  and  so  sick 
and  full  of  pain,  that  she  told  Regina  she 
would  rather  die  than  live.  If  the  Indians 
killed  her  she  would  go  to  her  dear  Savior. 
Poor  Regina  wept  bitterly  at  the  thought  of 
losing  her  sister. 

When  breakfast  was  over,  arrangements 
were  made  for  starting.  Barbara  could  not 
walk.  The  Indians  tiied  to  make  her 
walk ;  but  it  was  impossible.  They  threat- 
ened her  with  the  tomahawk,  but  all  had 
no  effect ;  it  was  out  of  her  power  to  walk. 
What  was  now  to  be  done?  The  Indians 
all  gathered  round  her  and  examined  her 
11* 


126 


REG IX A;  OR, 


swollen  and  inflamed  foot ;  but  their  hearts 
were  harder  than  the  nether-millstone, — no 
compassion  was  awakened  in  those  hard- 
ened savages.  Barbara  was  resigned  to  her 
fate,  looking  back  upon  the  murder  of  her 
father  and  brother  and  looking  forward  to 
her  Savior  in  heaven  ;  and.  remembering 
the  words  of  her  Savior,  "  Fear  not  them 
that  can  kill  the  body,''  she  looked  almost 
with  joy  upon  the  end  of  her  suffering. 
She  was  now  rational ;  her  heart  was  lifted 
up  to  God  in  prayer.  The  Indians  held  a 
short  consultation  ;  then  one  of  them  walked 
right  up  to  Barbara  and  sank  his  tomahawk 
into  her  head — and  she  hardly  moved.  She 
was  then  scalped.  Regina  was  so  over- 
come that  Bhe  shrieked  out  and  threw  her- 
self upon  the  yet  writhing  body  of  her  sister ; 
but  the  Indian  fiends  tore  her  away  and 
soon  after  moved  off.  Eegina's  feet  were 
also  very  sore,  and  so  were  little  Susan's. 
Before  the  Indians  started  they  made  Re- 
gina tear  broad  pieces  from  the  woolen  pet- 
ticoat of  her  murdered  sister  and  tie  them 
around  her  feet  ami  the  feet  of  Susan. 
This  turned  out  to  be  of  great  advantage  to 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY  127 

the  poor  girls.  The  Indians  did  not  want 
to  lose  these  children  ;  they  expected  to  re- 
ceive a  ransom  for  them.  It  was  the  love 
of  gain,  and  nothing  else,  that  induced  them 
to  take  any  care  of  them. 

It  may  be  well  enough  here  to  state  that 
on  this  excursion  the  Indians  had  only 
murdered  two  families, — viz. :  the  Hartman 
family,  as  we  have  seen,  and  a  family  by 
the  name  of  Smith,  who  lived  about  eight 
miles  from  Hartman' s.  The  man  had  lost 
his  wife,  and  little  Susan  was  his  only  child. 
The  Indians  killed  him  before  daylight,  on 
the  same  day  that  they  came  to  Hartman's, 
and  carried  off  the  little  girl.  This  is  the 
way  Susan  came  into  their  cruel  hands. 

Sad  indeed  were  the  thoughts  of  Kegina 
now.  Her  father,  her  brother,  and  her  sis- 
ter, were  all  gone,  and  her  poor  mother  she 
never  expected  to  see  again ;  and  what 
would  become  of  her? 

But  the  journey  still  continued, — though 
the  Indians  did  not  seem  to  be  in  much  of 
a  hurry.  Sometimes  they  only  traveled 
eight  or  ten  miles  a  -day;  and  when  it 
rained  they  made  sheds  and  kept  them- 


.28 


regixa;  or, 


selves  dry.  But  it  was  getting  very  cold, 
and  on  the  ninth  or  tenth  day  it  snowed. 
The  poor  children  almost  perished.  Regina 
found  an  old  apron  of  her  mother's ;  this 
she  tore  in  two  pieces,  and  put  one  piece 
around  her  head  and  the  other  around  the 
head  of  Susan.  This  kept  their  heads 
warm.  The  pieces  of  cloth  they  had  round 
their  feet  were  turned  and  shifted  from 
time  to  time  as  they  became  torn.  They 
had  plenty  to  eat,  such  as  it  was, — mostly 
parched  corn  and  fresh  meat,  without  salt, 
though  roasted  or  cooked  in  the  camp- 
kettle. 

The  little  girls  were  now  no  longer 
watched  so  closely,  for  the  Indians  knew 
well  enough  that  they  would  not  attempt  to 
run  away.  Sometimes  the  Indians  would 
go  out  from  the  camp  and  bring  in  a  bear 
and  two  or  three  deer  in  one  day.  The 
bear-skin  belonged  to  the  one  who  shot  it ; 
but  the  deer-skins,  like  all  the  meat,  were 
common  property.  The  Indians  made  moc- 
casins of  them ;  and  one  of  them  made 
moccasins  also  for  our  poor  little  girls. 
This  was  delightful;  they  could  now  get 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  129 


along  so  much  better,  and  their  feet  were 
kept  warm.  This  was  like  a  green  spot  in 
the  dreary  desert  of  their  captivity. 

Poor  little  Susan  could  not  understand 
why  she  should  be  taken  so  far  from  home, 
and  used  to  ask  Regina,  in  German,  if  they 
would  soon  get  home.  Alas !  poor  child, 
she  had  no  home !  Regina,  though  but  a 
child  herself,  acted  the  part  of  a  mother 
to  her.  She  did  every  thing  she  could  to 
make  her  comfortable;  she  would  always 
get  her  a  drink,  and  at  night  she  would 
cover  her  up  warmly  with  the  blankets. 
And  when  the  poor  little  thing  would  cry, 
as  she  often  did,  Regina  would  try  to  com- 
fort her.  She  became  much  attached  to 
Regina.  They  were  indeed  little  compan- 
ions in  affliction. 

Thus  they  traveled  on  some  eighteen  or 
twenty  days  before  they  got  to  the  end  of 
their  dreary  journey.  But,  alas !  when 
they  got  to  the  end  of  their  long  journey 
their  condition  was  no  better  than  it  had 
been  on  the  way.  It  is  true,  they  had  not 
to  walk  and  carry  bundles,  but  they  had 
many  other  hardships  to  endure.  They 


180 


regina;  or, 


were  now  somewhere  in  New  York,  and 
fell  to  the  lot  of  a  young  Indian  who  had 
been  on  this  excursion,  and  who  perhaps 
had  been  more  brutal  than  the  rest. 

Now  just  imagine  the  condition  of  these 
poor  unfortunate  children,  far  from  home 
and  friends,  in  a  wild  country,  and  among 
cruel  savages.  How  thankful  you  ought  to 
be,  my  dear  young  readers,  that  your  lot  is 
cast  in  a  different  age,  and  that  you  have 
kind  friends  to  provide  for  you  and  take 
care  of  you. 

Still,  the  poor  girls  were  glad  their  jour- 
ney was  ended.  The  young  Indian,  when 
they  came  to  their  grand  halt, — or  the  place 
from  which  they  had  started, —  took  the 
children  (though  not  the  blankets)  to  his 
little  hut,  called  a  wigwam.  It  was  a  very 
small  log  hut,  with  a  bad  roof,  and  open  on 
all  sides;  still,  it  was  better  than  none. 
Here  they  found  an  ugly  old  Indian  wo- 
man, who  was  the  mother  of  the  young  In- 
dian. This  was  now  their  home.  Here 
they  spent  many  a  sad  and  dreary  year. 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  131 


CHAPTER  VII. 

REGINA  AND   SUSAN  IN  CAPTIVITY. 

THEIR  HARDSHIPS  —  THE  CRUELTY  OP  THE  OLD  SQUAW — ■ 
HOW  THEY  SPENT  THEIR  TIME — THEIR  AFFECTION  FOR 
EACH  OTHER. 

We  have  followed  Regina  to  the  place 
of  her  captivity ;  let  us  now  look  into  her 
abode,  and  her  toils,  and  her  sufferings. 

The  name  of  the  old  squaw,  in  whose 
charge  she  was  placed,  was  Shelackla, 
which  means  "  a  dark  or  rainy  cloud." 
She  was  as  drunken,  cross,  unfeeling,  and 
ill-natured  an  old  hag  as  is  rarely  seen. 
She  was  never  sober  when  she  could  get 
any  thing  to  get  drunk  with,  and,  when 
drunk,  she  was  a  perfect  fury.  Her  son, 
although  himself  a  very  bad  man,  could 
not  remain  with  his  mother.  Hence  he 
often  left  her  for  weeks  together,  to  pro- 
vide for  herself  or  starve.     She  was  old 


132 


regina;  or, 


and  decrepit,  and  mnch  crippled  with  the 
rheumatism,  so  that  most  of  the  time  she 
could  not  walk.  This  fact  saved  poor  Re- 
gina many  a  severe  blow.  Regina  had  to 
carry  all  the.  wood  to  the  wigwam  that  was 
needed;  and  in  the  summer  she  had  to 
gather  all  kinds  of  fruits  and  roots,  and  in 
the  winter  she  had  to  catch  all  kinds  of 
wild  animals  for  meat,  to  sustain  the  old 
squaw.  Every  time  she  came  home  with- 
out the  quantity  and  quality  the  old  hag 
wanted,  she  would  beat  her  most  unmer- 
cifully. She  seemed  to  take  pleasure  in 
hearing  Regina  and  little  Susan  scream- 
ing.  Sometimes  she  was  very  kind,  and 
would  give  the  girls  a  piece  of  dried 
venison,  or  a  handful  of  parched  corn,  or  a 
few  dried  whortleberries.  The  children's 
clothes  wTere  soon  torn  into  tatters.  Of 
course,  when  they  were  worn  out  they 
got  no  others,  but  had  to  dress  just  as  the 
Indian  children  dressed.  They  had  a  kind 
of  sack,  made  of  deer-skin,  just  largo 
enough  to  go  over  the  body,  and  extend- 
ing from  the  hip-bones  almost  clown  to  the 
knees.    This  curious  bag-shaped  garment 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  133 

was  either  kept  up  by  being  tied  around 
the  waist  with  a  bark  string,  or  supported 
by  suspenders  over  the  shoulders,  also  made 
of  bark.  The  arms,  legs,  and  all  the  upper 
part  of  the  body,  were  naked  and  exposed 
to  the  cold ;  still,  in  very  cold  weather, 
Eegina  had  also  a  small,  dirty,  thin  blan- 
ket, and  moccasins  and  leggings.  But  it 
was  a  long  time  before  the  poor  girl  could 
become  fully  reconciled  to  such  an  out- 
landish dress.  But  what  was  to  be  done  ? 
she  could  not  help  herself. 

When  she  was  sent  out  into  the  woods 
for  any  thing,  she  often  kneeled  down 
under  a  tree  and  recited  all  the  prayers  and 
hymns  she  had  learned  from  her  dear  mo- 
ther. She  often  took  little  Susan  along 
and  taught  her  to  sing  and  pray.  But  she 
had  no  books,  and  no  person  to  speak  Ger- 
man to  but  little  Susan ;  and  the  old  squaw 
would  not  let  them  speak  German,  so  they 
had  to  learn  the  Indian  language;  and  they 
soon  learned  to  name  the  few  things  around 
them,  and  in  a  short  time  they  could  under- 
stand the  old  hag,  who  spoke  only  the  In- 
dian language,  so  that  in  the  course  of  a 
12 


134 


regina;  or, 


few  years  Regina  forgot  to  speak  the  Ger- 
man; but,  in  consequence  of  the  prayers 
and  hymns  she  had  learned  in  her  father's 
house,  she  could  always  understand  the 
German  language,  though  she  could  not 
speak  it. 

There  were  other  Indian  families  living 
in  the  neighborhood,  and  sometimes  Re- 
gina was  sent  to  a  neighbor's  house,  which 
the  Indians  call  "  wigwam."  Eegina  became 
acquainted  with  a  number  of  little  Indian 
children,  and  some  of  the  Indian  girls  were 
very  clever  and  kind  to  her.  They  formed 
quite  an  affection  for  her,  and  sometimes 
visited  her  at  her  own  house,  and  taught 
her  to  weave  bark  and  grass  baskets,  and 
work  beads  on  purses  and  moccasins, — at 
which  Regina  became  very  expert,  and  did 
a  great  deal  in  the  way  of  supporting  her 
cruel  mistress.  She  learned  the  Indian  art 
of  coloring  from  the  old  squaw  with  whom 
she  lived.  This  old  squaw  had  once  been 
famous  for  her  expertness  in  making  all 
kinds  of  Indian  things,  and  her  cabin  was 
hung  all  around  with  curious  ornaments 
worked  on  skins  and  bark  and  different 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  135 


kinds  of  cloth.  In  her  younger  days  she 
had  a  number  of  wampum  belts,  that  were 
very  beautiful ;  and  these  she  would  some- 
times, when  in  a  very  good  humor,  show 
the  girls,  and  tell  them  when  she  made 
them — so  many  moons  ago,  and  she  was  so 
many  moons  making  them. 

Sometimes,  when  the  little  Indian  girls 
would  come  to  see  Regina,  if  the  old  squaw 
was  in  a  bad  humor,  she  would  drive  them 
away  with  great  fury;  at  other  times  she 
seemed  glad  to  see  them. 

The  Indian  children  had  their  sports, 
and  plays,  and  pastimes ;  but,  as  they  were 
generally  of  a  rude  nature,  Regina  never 
had  much  pleasure  in  them. 

As  Regina  was  of  a  very  fair  complexion, 
and  had  large  blue  eyes  and  red  cheeks,  the 
Indian  children  gave  her  the  name  Saw^que- 
hanna,  which  means,  in  their  language,  "  a 
white  lily."  Little  Susan,  who  was  of  a 
dark  complexion  and  shorter  than  Indian 
children  of  her  age  generally  were,  they 
called  Knoloska,  wThich  means  "  a  short- 
legged  bear."  By  these  names  only  were 
they  known  among  the  Indian  children. 


136 


REG  IN  A;  OR, 


During  the  summer  the  poor  captives 
fared  pretty  well ;  but  in  the  winter  they 
had  hard  times.  Regina  had  to  carry  all 
the  wood  to  the  wigwam  to  keep  the  old 
squaw  warm ;  and  when  they  were  out  of 
provision  she  had  to  get  it  as  best  she 
could,  and  wo  be  to  her  if  she  came  home 
without  something  to  eat !  She  was  sure  to 
get  a  beating  from  her  cruel  mistress. 

Time  passed  on — four,  five,  six  years, — 
and  no  change ; — the  same  dull  round  and 
routine  of  Indian  life.  Regina  was  now 
growing  up  toward  womanhood  ;  but,  alas  ! 
her  fair,  white  complexion  was  turned  to  a 
tawny  brown,  and  her  once  beautiful  and 
glossy  hair  was  in  a  bad  plight.  Her  once 
buoyant  and  cheerful  spirit  was  crushed  by 
the  brutal  treatment  she  received  and  the 
many  hardships  she  had  to  endure.  The 
home  of  her  childhood  she  could  never  for- 
get. How  could  she  forget  her  dear  mo- 
ther? She  often  thought  of  her  once  happy 
home,  and  wept  when  she  thought  of  her 
mother,  and  wondered  whether  she  would 
ever  again  behold  her  face  ?  She  was  not 
happy  in  her  Indian  home;  she  could  not 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  137 

give  up  the  idea  of  once  more  being  per- 
mitted to  see  her  white  friends.  She  still 
continued  to  say  her  prayers,  and  often — 
very  often — did  she  ask  God  to  restore  her 
to  her  dear  mother.  She  also  recollected  a 
portion  of  her  catechism,  and  taught  little 
Susan  all  she  knew  of  God  and  of  his  Son 
Jesus  Christ.  Her  ideas  of  the  Savior  were 
not  very  clear,  for  she  had  forgotten  much 
that  she  had  once  known ;  but,  still,  she 
knew  that  he  had  come  into  the  world  and 
died  to  save  poor  sinners.  She  knew,  too, 
that  lie  was  a  divine  Being,  and  that  she 
must  pray  to  him ;  and  as  she  recollected 
the  creed  distinctly,  and  often  repeated  it 
as  one  of  her  prayers,  that  fact  kept  the  true 
idea  of  the  Savior  and  his  mission  into  our 
world,  his  death  and  ascension,  fresh  in  her 
mind.  And  then  it  seemed  so  strange  to 
her  that  she  should  never  hear  any  singing 
and  praying,  as  she  had  been  accustomed  to 
in  her  father's  house. 

We  stated,  a  while  ago,  that  the  little  In- 
dian children  sometimes  came  to  Regina 
and  Susan,  and  tried  to  make  them  happy, 
by  introducing  their  rude  and  shocking 
12* 


138 


regina;  or, 


plays.  These  plays  consisted  in  running 
and  jumping,  and  scalping  and  torturing, 
and  making  the  children  run  the  gauntlet. 
This  was  a  play  Regina  did  not  much  rel- 
ish. The  plays  of  children  are  said,  in  all 
countries,  to  be  derived  mainly  from  the 
pursuits  and  labors  of  their  parents.  And 
it  is  no  doubt  true.  The  little  son  of  the 
farmer  will  be  apt  to  play  horse ;  while  the 
son  of  the  mechanic  will  use  a  tool.  Thus, 
in  time  of  war,  children  will  play  soldier. 
So  the  little  Indians  would  have  their  fun 
in  the  scalping-frolic  and  making  each 
other  run  the  gauntlet.  Now,  I  suppose, 
many  of  my  little  readers  do  not  know 
what  this  means ;  I  will,  therefore,  explain 
it.  When  the  Indians  took  a  prisoner, 
they  brought  him  before  the  great  council, 
where  his  fate  was  determined  upon.  He 
was  either  to  be  shot  with  arrows,  to  be 
burnt  alive,  or  to  run  the  gauntlet.  The 
running  of  the  gauntlet  was  this: — All 
the  Indians — men,  women,  and  children — 
placed  themselves  in  two  long  rows;  each 
one  had  a  stick  or  club  in  his  or  her  hand ; 
the  prisoner  was  to  run  through  the  open 


TRUE  PIETY"  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  139 

ing,  and  each  was  to  strike  him  as  he  ran. 
Sometimes  they  would  kill  him ;  for  if  he 
was  so  unfortunate  as  to  he  knocked  down 
— which  often  happened — he  would  never 
be  permitted  to  rise,  for  they  would  all  fall 
upon  him  with  their  clubs  and  beat  him  to 
death.  This  was  one  of  the  plays  of  those 
rude  children  of  the  forest.  Little  Susan 
was  more  interested  in  these  rough  plays 
than  Regina. 

We  shall  now  leave  these  children  a 
while,  in  their  wild  Indian  home, —  God 
will  take  care  of  them, — and  return  to  the 
mother  of  Regina,  and  see  how  she  is  get- 
ting along,  and  see,  too,  whether  she  has 
forgotten  her  lost  children. 


140 


regina;  or, 


CHAPTER  YIII. 

THE   HOME    OF  A   DESOLATE   WIDOW  —  HER 
THOUGHTS — HER  HOPES. 

We  stated  that  the  neighbors  in  the 
"Valley  of  Blood" — as  we  shall  call  the 
place  where  John  Hart  man  and  George 
were  butchered  by  the  Indians — were  very 
kind,  and  built  her  a  house,  and  did  every 
thing  they  could  to  make  her  comfortable. 
But,  alas !  she  was  sad  and  sorrowful.  Al- 
though she  had  one  source  of  comfort  that 
many  have  not, — that  was  true  religion, — 
yet  there  was  a  settled  gloom  upon  her 
mind,  occasioned  by  the  absence  of  her 
daughter  Regina; — for  the  body  of  her 
murdered  daughter  Barbara  was  found. 
And  when  she  heard  of  it  she  prevailed  on 
a  party  of  her  neighbors  to  go  with  her; 
and  they  found  that  some  hunters,  who 
had  first  seen  it,  dug  a  hole  and  put  the 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  14.1 


body  of  Barbara  into  it.  She  found  the 
grave  on  the  banks  of  the  stream,  where  it 
is  still  pointed  out  as  the  "  German  Cap- 
tive's Grave,"  under  a  large  oak,  through 
whose  dense  foliage  the  winds  still  sigh  her 
requiem.  She  wanted  to  take  the  body 
home  with  her;  but  her  neighbors  dis- 
suaded her  from  it.  So  she  agreed  to  leave 
it  rest  there  in  peace  until  the  morning  of 
the  resurrection.  The  fate  of  this  poor  girl 
was  something  like  that  of  Miss  McCrea, 
of  which  you  may  have  read  in  our  Revolu- 
tionary history.  Mrs.  Hartman,  however, 
had  the  grave  opened,  and  there  she  saw 
her  dear  Barbara  with  her  cleft  head  !  Oh, 
how  her  heart  was  moved !  She  was  so  over- 
powered that  she  nearly  fainted,  and  it  was 
some  time  before  she  recovered ;  and,  when 
she  did  recover  from  her  swoon,  her  daugh- 
ter was  again  buried  from  her  sight,  and  in 
sadness  and  sorrow  she  returned  to  her 
dreary  home.  She  often  was  heard  to  say, 
"If  I  only  was  certain  of  the  fate  of  Regina 
I  could  be  happy  once  more;  but,"  she  de- 
clared, "  I  never  can  have  peace  of  mind 
until  I  know  what  has  become  of  her." 


142 


regina;  or, 


She  often  wanted  to  employ  men  to  go 
among  the  Indians  in  ]STew  York  and 
Canada  and  try  to  find  out  what  had  be- 
come of  her.  Her  friends  and  neighbors 
would  comfort  her — some  one  way,  some 
another. 

One  woman  told  her,  one  day,  that 
she  had  no  doubt  Eegina  would  be  re- 
turned to  her  yet.  "God  grant  it!"  ex- 
claimed the  mother.  "  If  I  could  but  once 
see  my  long-lost  daughter  I  would  say,  like 
good  old  Simeon,  '  low,  Lord,  let  thy  ser- 
vant depart  in  peace.'  "  There  seemed  to 
be  but  one  thought  in  her  mind,  and  that 
was  her  poor  lost  child.  She  never  forgot 
her  in  her  prayers.  She  spoke  of  her  when 
awake  and  dreamed  of  her  by  night;  and 
even  the  very  recollection  of  her  dreams,  in 
which  she  had  seen  her  beloved  daughter, 
was  delicious. 

She  did  every  thing  that  could  be  done  to 
hear  of  her  daughter.  She  often  performed 
long  journeys,  on  foot,  to  places  where  she 
had  heard  of  children  that  had  been  re- 
stored. She  sometimes  went  to  Philadel- 
phia, to  see  the  governor  and  the  army 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  143 


officers  about  her  daughter;  but  no  light 
was  shed  upon  her  child. 

One  day,  a  kind  friend  made  it  his  busi- 
ness to  cross  the  Blue  Mountains,  to  inform 
her  that  he  had  heard  of  a  girl  who  was 
taken  from  the  Indians ;  and,  from  the 
description,  he  had  no  doubt  it  was  her 
daughter.  "Yes,  yes;  it  is  my  daughter!" 
Next  day  she  started  off,  bright  and  early, 
and  walked  that  day  as  far  as  Reading.  Next 
morning  she  started  for  the  place  called 
Maxitany,  to  the  house  of  old  Colonel  Le- 
van,  where  the  girl  was ;  but,  alas !  when 
she  came  there  she  was  disappointed, — it 
was  not  her  daughter  !  So  she  had  again  to 
return  without  her. 

She  was  very  kindly  treated  by  Colonel 
Levan  and  his  family,  and  formed  a  strong 
attachment  to  his  daughter  Esther,  who  was 
then  about  sixteen  years  old,  and  reminded 
her  of  her  own  dear  Regina.  This  same 
Esther  Levan,  a  few  years  afterward,  was 
married  to  Benjamin,  youngest  son  of  Con- 
rad TVeiser,  and  became  a  neighbor  to  Mrs. 
Hartrnan.  She  lived  in  Womelsdorf,  Berks 
county,  where  she  died,  in  1820,  at  the  ad- 


144 


regina;  oh, 


vanced  age  of  eighty-six  years.  From  her 
many  of  the  facts  in  this  book  were  gath- 
ered by  her  grandson,  the  author. 

Little  Christian  was  now  the  only  com- 
fort  of  his  bereaved  mother.  He  was  now 
a  stout  lad  of  some  fourteen  years,  and  was 
a  great  help  to  his  mother.  She  taught 
him  to  read,  and  taught  him  religion.  He 
was  a  fine  boy ; — did  every  thing  he  could 
to  please  his  poor  mother.  In  worldly 
things  they  got  on  right  well ;  the  widow 
and  her  son  had  enough  to  eat  and  wear. 
But  Regina  "was  not,"  and  that  thought 
continually  marred  her  peace.  She  often 
sang  her  favorite  hymn  : — 

"  Alone,  and  yet  not  all  alone,  am  I 
In  this  lone  wilderness." 

She  often  thought  that  the  Lord  had 
laid  heavy  afflictions  upon  her.  Still,  she 
thought  it  was  all  ricdit.  "I  deserve  it  all 
for  my  sins.  But  God  will,  at  last,  deliver 
me  from  all  these  afflictions ;  and,  perhaps, 
I  shall  then  see  that  such  a  severe  discipline 
was  the  only  thing  that  could  bring  me  to 
heaven."    If  she  could  have  understood 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  145 


the  English  language,  she  might  have  given 
full  utterance  to  her  burdened  heart  in  the 
beautiful  hymn  written  about  that  time  by 
Charles  Wesley,  whose  muse  was  fired  by 
the  flames  that  burn  on  the  altar  above  :— 

"And  let  this  feeble  body  fail 

And  let  it  faint  or  die,- 
My  soul  shall  quit  this  mournful  vale 

And  soar  to  worlds  on  high  — 
Shall  join  the  disembodied  saints, 

And  find  its  long-sought  rest, 
That  only  bliss,  for  which  it  pants, 

In  the  Redeemer's  breast! 

fe  In  hope  of  that  immortal  crown, 

I  now  the  crown  sustain, 
And  gladly  wander  up  and  down, 

And  smile  at  toil  and  pain  : 
I  suffer  on  my  threescore  years 

Till  my  Beliv'rer  come, 
And  wipe  away  his  servant's  tears 

And  take  his  exile  home. 

***** 

**  Oh,  what  are  all  my  suff'rings  here, 
If,  Lord,  thou  count  me  meet 
With  that  enraptur'cl  host  t'appear, 

And  worship  at  his  feet ! 
Give  joy  or  grief,  give  ease  or  pain, 

Take  life  or  friends  away, 
But  let  me  find  them  all  again 
In  that  eternal  day  1" 
13 


146 


regina;  or, 


These  were  the  sentiments  of  Mrs.  Hart- 
man.  She  longed  for  that  better  world, 
where  she  might  see  her  blessed  Savior  and 
her  dear  lost  ones.  But  still  she  believed 
her  Regina  was  not  dead,  and  that  she 
would  jet  see  her  before  she  died ;  but  how 
this  would  come  to  pass  she  did  not  know. 
She  used  to  say,  "God,  in  his  own  good 
time,  would  bring  it  to  pass."  Spring 
came,  with  its  joys  and  its  revived  hopes; 
summer,  with  its  hot  suns,  came;  the 
golden  autumn  again  returned,  and  another 
cold  winter  was  at  the  widow's  door;  but  no 
tidings  of  Regina  came.  "When  the  lone 
widow  sat  by  her  cheerful  fire,  and  heard 
the  rude  blasts  of  the  pitiless  storm,  she 
thought  of  her  absent  daughter,  and  thought 
that  perhaps  she  was  exposed  to  its  merci- 
less peltings.  Oh,  then  her  heart  would 
sink  within  her  and  the  tears  would  start 
from  her  eyes  !  She  could  hardly  wait  till 
the  return  of  spring,  she  was  so  intent  upon 
carrying  out  the  plans  she  had  formed  to 
find  her  daughter.  Sometimes  she  re- 
proached herself  for  not  having  been  more 
active  in  hunting  her  up; — perhaps  if  she 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  147 


had  gone  to  Fort  Pitt  she  might  have 
heard  something  of  her.  She  made  up  her 
mind,  if  spared  till  spring,  she  would  leave 
no  stone  unturned  until  she  would  find  out 
what  had  become  of  her  daughter. 

Early  in  the  spring  of  1763,  she  made  up 
her  mind  to  go  to  Pittsburg,  or,  as  it  was 
then  called,  Fort  Pitt.  She  made  herself 
acquainted  with  the  road,  and  was  in- 
formed by  Conrad  Weiser  that,  if  she 
would  go  to  a  little  village  in  the  great  val- 
ley called  Falling  Spring,  or  Chambers's  Mill, 
(now  Chambersburg,)  she  could  there  get  an 
opportunity  to  go  to  Fort  Pitt  with  the  pack- 
ers;—  that  is,  men  who  carried  iron,  salt, 
powder,  and  other  things,  out  to  Fort  Pitt  on 
pack-horses.  She  took  a  horse,  and — with 
her  son  Christian,  who  took  a  good  rifle — 
she  started  for  the  Falling  Springs.  She 
reached  that  point — crossing  the  river  at 
Harris's  Ferry,  passing  through  Carlisle — in 
four  days.  She  remained  with  Mr.  Benja- 
min Chambers,  whose  house  was  always 
open  for  strangers,  until  she  had  an  oppor- 
tunity of  joining  a  company  of  packers, 
which  was  offered  in  a  few  days.    She  laid 


148 


regixa;  ob? 


in  a  stock  of  bread,  and  flour,  and  salt  ;  for 
their  meat  they  depended  upon  the  trusty 
rifle.  The j  passed  through  Raystown,  now 
Bedford,  Pennsylvania,  and  by  Fort  Le- 
gouier,  and,  without  any  thing  more  than  a 
very  tiresome  journey,  they  reached  Fort 
Pitt — then  a  garrison  of  the  English  go- 
vernment, and  a  few  trading-houses  and 
two  small  taverns — in  thirteen  days. 

In  one  of  the  taverns  there  was  an  ost- 
ler, who  was  a  German,  and  could  speak 
some  English.  This  man  was  of  great  ser- 
vice to  Mrs.  Hartman.  He  acted  as  her  in- 
terpreter with  the  landlord,  and  with  Colo- 
nel Boquet,  the  commander  of  the  fort,  and 
other  officers. 

Her  story  soon  became  known,  and  her 
heroic  conduct  was  much  admired  and  ap- 
plauded by  the  whole  garrison.  It  showed 
a  strength  of  love  and  determination  of  pur- 
pose not  often  exhibited.  All  felt  an  in- 
terest in  her  godlike  mission  :  but  no  clue 
could  be  given  to  her  daughter.  Still,  her 
visit  was  not  in  vain,  for  it  had  a  powerful 
effect  in  arousing  the  determination  of  the 
officers  and  soldiers  in  compelling  the  In- 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  149 


clians  to  give  up  the  many  innocent  chil- 
dren they  had  carried  off.  The  brave  and 
heroic  conduct  of  this  devoted  mother,  who 
had  crossed  the  Alleghany  Mountains  at 
the  risk  of  being  made  a  captive  herself  by 
the  savages  that  were  still  prowling  about 
in  the  mountains  and  valleys  of  Western 
Pennsylvania,  kindled  anew  the  desire  to 
rid  the  world  of  such  monsters.  All  the 
officers  promised  to  keep  a  look-out  for  Re- 
gina; — the  very  name  interested  them — a 
queen's.  "  We  will  certainly  inquire  the 
name  of  every  captive  girl  we  take  from 
the  Indians,  and  write  you  a  letter  and 
send  it  to  Colonel  Conrad  Weiser,  as  soon 
as  we  find  your  daughter."  This  was  in- 
deed highly  encouraging.  Now  she  had 
some  hope.  She  was  not  sorry  she  had 
made  this  long  journey.  She  could  now 
rest  contented  even  if  she  would  never 
find  her  daughter.  She  had  now  done  her 
duty. 

She  waited  until  a  company  of  packers 
again  returned,  and  then  retraced  her  steps. 
Sometimes  she  would  walk  a  few  miles; 
and  then  her  son — of  course  they  had  to 

13* 


150 


regina;  or, 


camp  out;  they  had  a  thick, heavy, hempen 
cloth  and  blankets  along — would  cut  four 
sticks,  with  prongs  at  the  end ;  these  they 
would  stick  in  the  ground,  and  fasten  the 
cloth  to  them,  and  let  large  flaps  of  eloth 
hang  down  at  the  four  sides.  Into  this 
little  room  they  would  creep,  and  many  a 
sweet  and  refreshing  Bleep  they  had.  The 
widow  always  said  her  prayers,  even  when 
she  camped  out  in  the  wilderness.  Under 
the  protection  of  the  Almighty  she  felt  her- 
self safe. 

On  one  occasion,  while  they  were  en- 
camped near  a  place  called  the  "  Shades  of 
Death,"'  near  the  place  where  the  road 
crossed  the  Juniata  river,  they  were 
alarmed  hy  a  party  of  Indians;  but  the 
sentinels  saw  them  and  gave  the  signal. 
In  a  moment  the  packers  were  ready  for 
action,  and  the  cowardly  savages  skulked 
off,  to  attack  some  lone  cabin,  or  perhaps 
some  unprotected  women  and  children. 
Thus  Providence  brought  this  lonely  widow 
in  safety  and  peace  to  her  home  again. 

She  now  contented  herself,  and  made  up 
her  mind  patiently  to  await  the  further  de- 


TRUE  PIETY  AMOXG  THE  LOWLY.  151 


vclopments  of  Providence  in  reference  to 
her  lost  daughter.  And,  as  nothing  re- 
markahle  occurred  until  the  mysterious 
plans  of  God's  government  were  matured 
fully  in  reference  to  Regina,  we  will  leave 
Mrs.  Hartman  in  her  quiet  home  until  her 
presence  is  required  in  another  quarter. 


152 


regina;  or, 


CHAPTER  IX. 

EEGIXA — HER    PEE  SENTIMENTS    OE  DELIVER- 
ANCE. 

THE  INDIAN  WAS — THE  TRIUMPHS  OF  THE  ENGLISH  ARMS 

 THE  BATTLES — THE  CAPITULATION — A  LARGE  NUMBER 

OF  WHITE  CAPTIVE  CHILDREN  DELIVERED  TO  COLONEL 
BOQUET — REGINA  AMONG  THE  NUMBER. 

Xine  long  and  dreary  years  had  rolled 
by,  and  poor  Eegina  was  still  a  captive 
among  the  rode  and  savage  Indians,  and, 
so  far  as  she  could  see.  she  must  remain 
during  her  lifetime.  She  was  now  nine- 
teen years  old. — a  tine-looking  woman  :  hut, 
as  her  complexion  was  much  tanned  by  the 
sun  and  weather,  and  her  once  fair  and 
glossy  hair  had  become  darker  and  much 
coarser,  and  as  her  bright,  large,  blue  eyes 
did  uot  become  a  dark  skin,  she  was  not 
near  as  pretty  as  she  had  been  nine  years 
before.  The  Indians  did  not  consider  her 
beau:::Vd,  because  she  had  not  black  hair 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  153 


and  eyes.  She  had  now  forgotten  how  to 
speak  any  other  than  the  Maquan  Indian  lan- 
guage. The  tribe  among  whom  she  wTas 
were  called  Maquasas.  Still,  she  remem- 
bered her  mother.  She  had  forgotten  how 
she  looked,  but  remembered  her  kindness 
and  the  sound  instruction  she  had  received 
from  her.  She  often  tried  to  recall  to  her 
mind  the  image  of  her  mother,  but  she 
could  not;  it  had  been  obliterated  from  the 
tablets  of  memory.  She  often  asked  her- 
self the  question,  "If  I  were  to  meet  my 
mother,  would  I  know  her?  Oh,  yes; 
though  I  have  forgotten  how  she  looked, — 
and  perhaps  she  has  changed  as  much  as 
I, — yet,  if  I  would  hear  that  sweet,  melo- 
dious voice  that  once  thrilled  my  youthful 
heart,  I  would  surely  know  her." 

When  we  say  that  Regina  had  forgotten 
the  German  language,  we  only  mean  that 
she  could  not  have  carried  on  a  conversa- 
tion in  it;  but  she  could  have  understood 
it,  and  still  could  repeat  her  hymns  and 
prayers  in  that  language. 

Little  Susan  was  now  twelve  years  old ; 
and,  as  she  had  black  hair  and  black  eyes, 


154 


regina:  or,. 


and  had  become  very  dark  in  her  com- 
plexion, she  looked  very  much  like  an  In- 
dian girl.  She  was  much  attached  to  Re- 
gina. and  Susan  was  the  only  person  Regina 
could  love. 

Xo  wonder  they  loved  each  other.  For 
nine  long  and  dreary  years  they  had  been 
companions  in  sorrow  and  affliction.  Their 
hearts  had  become  knit  together,  so  that  the 
very  thoughts  of  a  separation  were  painful. 
The  only  few  moments  of  joy  they  had  ex- 
perienced in  their  long  captivity  were  from 
each  other.  The  ranee  of  their  thoughts 
was  very  limited.  The  little  knowledge  of 
God  which  Regina  had  acquired  she  freely 
taught  Susan.  But  her  mind  did  not  ex- 
pand. She  had  grown  up  to  be  a  woman; 
but  the  powers  of  her  intellect  did  not  keep 
pace  with  those  of  her  body.  The  Indians 
are.  as  is  well  known,  very  ignorant :  that 
is.  they  Lave  no  abstract  ideas — no  know- 
ledge of  literature  nor  of  history.  Thev 
have  no  books — no  written  language ;  hence, 
no  records  of  the  past.  And  even  if  one 
generation  were  to  learn  any  thing  of  im- 
portance, or  make  any  valuable  discoveries, 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  155 


the  succeeding  generations  could  not  profit 
by  them.  Hence,  most  of  the  Indians  do 
not  know  their  own  age.  Yet  they  have 
good  minds;  and,  as  their  attention  is  not 
taken  up  with  books,  they  are  very  much 
thrown  upon  their  own  resources.  They 
are  generally  very  close  observers  of  na- 
ture. It  is  wonderful  how  sharp  their 
senses  and  all  their  powers  of  observation 
become.  They  watch  the  changes  of  the 
seasons  with  great  care  and  minuteness. 
They  never  plant  their  corn,  nor  any  thing 
that  is  liable  to  be  injured  by  frosts,  until 
the  new  white-oak-leaves  are  as  large  as  a 
squirrel's  foot.  They  never  start  on  a  jour- 
ney in  cloudy  weather  until  they  can  see  as 
much  blue  sky  in  the  east  as  will  make  a 
shot-pouch.  When  the  ground-hog  seeks 
his  winter-quarters  the  Indian  does  not  ven- 
ture from  home;  nor  will  he  leave  home 
when  the  maple-leaves  turn  up  their  white 
sides.  The}-  never  lose  themselves  in  the 
forest;  it  is  said  they  always  know  every 
point  of  the  compass,  even  in  cloudy 
weather  or  in  the  darkest  night.  The  fol- 
lowing anecdote,  which  I  have  seen  some- 


156 


regina;  or, 


where,  may  serve  to  give  you  a  fair  spoci 
men  of  the  close  observing  powers  of  the 
Indian : — 

One  day,  an'  old  Indian  was  out  hunting, 
and  shot  a  fine,  large,  fat  buck.  He  was 
too  large  to  carry  home,  so  he  took  the 
skin  oil)  and,  Indian  fashion,  bent  down  a 
sapling,  and,  having  fastened  his  buck  to 
the  sapling,  let  it  go.  The  buck  was  thus 
raised  about  seven  feet  from  the  ground. 
]SText  day,  he  came  with  one  of  his  sons  to 
carry  the  buck  home;  but  great  was  his 
disappointment  when  he  found  his  buck 
was  gone.  The  old  man  examined  mat- 
ters very  closely,  and  finally  made  up  his 
mind  who  it  was  that  had  stolen  his  buck. 
He  told  his  son,  simply,  that  a  white  man 
had  done  it.  So  he  went  in  pursuit  of  the 
thief.  After  some  time  he  met  a  white 
hunter.  He  went  up  to  him  and  addressed 
him  thus : — 

"  Did  you  see  a  little,  old,  white  man 
with  a  short  gun,  and  a  little  dog  with  a 
short  tail?" 

"Yes,"  says  the  hunter,  "I  did;  and 
what  of  it?" 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  .  157 

"Why,"  says  the  Indian,  "he  stole  my 
buck." 

"  Well,"  says  the  hunter,  "that  may  be, 
for  he  had  the  hind-quarters  of  a  very  fat 
buck  on  his  shoulders.  But,  now,  old  fel- 
low, I  want  you  to  tell  me  how  you  found 
out  all  these  things  about  the  man  who 
stole  your  buck?" 

"Why,"  says  the  Indian,  "when  I  came 
to  the  tree  I  saw7  that  my  buck  was  stolen. 
I  knew  the  wolves  could  not  get  at  him.  I 
knew  an  Indian  did  not  take  him,  because 
the  Indian  is  tall  and  could  have  reached 
him  from  the  ground;  whereas  the  man  who 
took  it  wras  so  small  that  he  had  to  make  a 
little  stone  pile  to  reach  up.  I  knew  he 
had  a  short  gun,  because  I  saw  where  his 
gun  stood  against  a  tree;  I  could  see  the 
print  of  the  breech  in  the  sand  on  the 
ground  and  the  mark  which  the  muz- 
zle left  on  the  bark.  I  knew  he  had  a 
little  dog,  for  I  saw  the  prints  of  his  feet ; 
and  I  knew  the  dog  had  a  short  tail,  for  I 
sawT  the  print  of  the  stump  in  the  sand.  I 
knew  he  was  an  old  man,  from  the  short- 
ness of  his  steps;  and  I  knew  he  was  a 

14 


158 


regina;  or, 


white  man,  from  the  fact  that  in  walking 
his  toes  were  turned  outward,  and  the  In- 
dian's feet  are  always  straightforward." 

This  was  pretty  close  reasoning, — -equal 
to  the  finest  specimen  of  the  inductive 
philosophy  of  Lord  Bacon. 

Regina  had  exercised  her  powers  of  ob- 
servation to  a  considerable  extent;  but  she 
still  hoped  something  would  turn  up  to  re- 
store her  to  her  friends.  The  Indian  wo- 
men and  girls  tried  to  persuade  her  to 
marry  an  Indian ;  but  she  would  not  hear 
of  such  a  thing  —  all  Indians  were  odious 
in  her  sight.  And,  although  some  of  the 
young  braves  tried  to  insinuate  themselves 
into  her  good  graces,  she  would  have  no- 
thing to  do  with  those  monsters  in  human 
shape.  She  could  not  forget  the  terrible 
scenes  of  her  father's  massacre,  and  the 
cleft  head  of  her  sister  continually  seemed 
to  gape  upon  her.  How  could  she  ever 
have  any  respect — much  less  any  affection 
— for  the  cruel  murderers  of  her  dearest 
friends?  One  young  brave  was  determined 
to  win  her.  He  bribed  the  old  squaw,  with 
a  gallon  of  rum  and  some  brass  trinkets,  to 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  159 


assist  him.  He  even  went  out  on  a  mur- 
dering excursion,  and  brought  no  less  than 
seven  scalps,  (some  of  them  women  and 
children,)  and  laid  them  at  Regina's  feet! 
But  this  horrid  brutality  only  increased  her 
abhorrence.  She  repulsed  all  such  over- 
tures. And  yet  she  was  afraid  that,  accord- 
ing to  the  Indian  fashion,  her  cruel  old 
mistress  might  give  her  away  in  marriage 
to  some  young  Indian.  But  the  old  hag 
could  not  spare  her ;  for  she  was  now  very 
helpless,  and  Regina  had  to  support  her. 
God,  in  his  merciful  providence,  averted  so 
great  a  calamity,  and  Regina,  with  all  the 
hardships  and  wrongs  she  had  to  endure, 
was  never  compelled  to  marry  an  Indian. 
For  this  she  had  great  reason  to  thank  God, 
and  did  thank  him. 

The  Indians  and  the  French  were  still  at 
war  with  England.  In  1755,  four  warlike 
expeditions  were  projected  by  the  English 
against  the  French  and  Indians:  —  one 
against  Nova  Scotia ;  one  against  the 
French  and  Indians  on  the  Ohio, — the  ob- 
ject of  this  one  was  to  take  FortDu  Quesne, 
(now  Pittsburg ;)  a  third  was  to  take  Crown 


160 


REG  IX A  ;  OR, 


Point,  and  the  fourth  was  directed  against 
Niagara.  General  Braddock  commanded 
the  one  against  Fort  Pitt  or  Du  Qnesne, 
and  suffered  a  most  disastrous  defeat.  But 
the  other  three  were  partially  successful. 
The  French  and  Indians  were  routed  iu 
almost  every  engagement.  At  length  the 
French  had  to  give  up.  By  the  Peace  of 
Paris,  made  between  England  and  France, 
in  1763,  all  the  Canadas,  Nova  Scotia,  and 
the  island  of  Cape  Breton,  were  confirmed 
to  Great  Britain. 

The  Indians  were  now  in  a  bad  way. 
Their  French  allies  left  them  to  their  fate. 
They  had  now  the  whole  power  of  Great 
Britain  and  her  colonies  to  encounter;  and 
they  had  sense  enough  to  know  that  if  all 
the  Indians,  together  with  the  French, 
could  not  withstand  the  soldiers  of  Eng- 
land and  America,  they  would  stand  but  a 
poor  chance.  They  were  completely  subdued, 
and  agreed  to  any  terms  of  peace. 

Colonel  Boquet  dictated  the  terms  of 
peace  with  the  Indians;  and  one  of  the 
conditions  was  "that  all  white  children 
who  had  been  taken  captives  by  the  In- 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  161 


dians  must  be  given  up  to  the  English  Go- 
vernment." This  the  Indians  at  once 
agreed  to.  But  how  was  this  to  be  done  ? 
Colonel  Boquet  was  an  excellent  officer  and 
a  humane*  and  benevolent  gentleman.  He 
appointed  a  company  of  tried  veterans,  and 
sent  them  into  all  the  Indian  settlements,  to 
see  that  this  part  of  the  terms  of  peace  was 
complied  with  to  the  very  letter.  He  had  a 
great  many  applications  from  parents  for 
their  lost  children,  and,  among  the  rest, 
one  for  Regiua  from  her  mother.  He  was, 
therefore,  deeply  interested  in  this  work  of 
mercy.  The  Indians  soon  found  out  that 
there  was  now  a  force  sufficiently  powerful 
to  crush  them,  and  they  willingly  gave  up 
all  their  captives  who  wanted  to  leave 
them.  Strange  to  say,  some  would  not 
leave  them, — they  had  become  so  attached 
to  Indian  life  that  they  preferred  their  cap- 
tivity to  freedom. 

At  length,  they  (the  soldiers  of  Colonel 
Boquet)  had  finished  their  work,  and  more 
than  one  hundred  poor  children — from  five 
to  twenty  years  old — were  delivered  into 
his  hands.  When  they  were  brought  into 
14* 


162 


kegiha;  or, 


his  camp  his  noble  heart  was  deepty  af- 
fected. Many  of  these  poor  children  had 
lost  their  parents,  and  they  were  nearly 
naked.  Colonel  Boquet  was  moved  with 
compassion,  and  shed  tears  over  the  sad 
and  painful  spectacle.  The  brave  soldiers 
under  him  shared  in  his  noble  sympathies, 
and  joined  him  in  giving  their  blankets, 
and  handkerchiefs,  and  shirts,  and  every 
thing  they  could  spare,  to  cover  the  naked 
children.  They  were  kindly  treated  by  the 
whole  army. 

But  the  next  question  that  presented  it- 
self to  the  good  colonel  was,  What  is  to  be 
done  with  these  children?  He  consulted 
with  his  officers;  and  it  was  determined 
that  they  should  be  sent  to  Fort  Pitt  in  the 
government  baggage-wagons,  attended  by  a 
strong  escort,  and  that  he  himself  would 
accompany  them.  He  had  them  carefully 
brought  to  Fort  Fitt,  and  well  taken 
care  of. 

This  was  in  September,  1765.  He  or- 
dered the  facts  to  be  published  through- 
out the  colonies, — that  a  large  number  of 
children,  given  up  by  the   Indians,  were 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  1(>3 


now  at  Fort  Pitt,  and  requested  their 
friends  and  parents  to  come  and  get  their 
long-lost  children.  A  great  many  from 
the  western  counties  came ;  some  found 
their  children  and  some  did  not.  But, 
alas !  many  poor  little  children  had  no 
parents  or  friends  to  claim  them.  At 
that  time  there  was  no  orphan-home  near 
Pittsburg  ^as  there  is  now.  Just  think 
how  happy  these  little  orphans  would  have 
been  in  such  a  home,  where  they  could 
have  received  a  good  Christian  education, 
and  thus  become  useful  members  of  society. 
God  bless  the  orphan-home  ! 

If  you  could  have  been  in  Pittsburg  on 
the  13th  day  of  September,  1765,  and  have 
stood  at  the  lower  end  of  Penn  Street, 
where  the  old  fort  stood, — called  by  the 
French  Fort  Du  Quesne,  (pronounced  Du 
Kane,)  and  by  the  English  (in  honor  of 
"William  Pitt)  Fort  Pitt,— -you  might  have 
seen  a  touching  and  deeply-affecting  sight. 
The  children  were  all  brought  out  on  the 
parade-ground;  and,  having  been  placed 
front-face  in  a  long  row,  so  that  they  could 
be  seen,  and  the  anxious  parents  passing  up 


161 


regixa;  or, 


and  down  looking  out  for  their  dear  ones ; 
and  then,  when  the  eves  of  some  fond  mo- 
ther would  light  upon  her  long-lost  child, 
to  see  her  spring  forward  and  to  hear  the 
scream  of  delight,  and  then  to  see  that  mo- 
ther falling  into  a  swoon  of  joy.  Then, 
too,  vou  might  see  the  tears  of  sympathy 
starting  from  the  eyes  of  the  brave  and 
noble  officers,  and  see  the  rough,  hardened, 
and  weather-beaten  soldier  wiping  the  tears 
from  his  cheeks !  Such  scenes  were  wit- 
nessed day  after  day  until  upward  of  fifty 
children  had  been  found  by  their  parents. 
But  there  were  still  fifty  or  more  children 
who  had  not  been  claimed.  TThat  was  to 
be  done  with  them?  Colonel  Boquet  was 
not  the  man  to  leave  a  godlike  work  half- 
done.  He  was  determined  that  if  these 
poor  children  had  parents  or  friends,  those 
parents  and  friends  should  have  an  oppor- 
tunity of  finding  their  children.  He  was 
himself  a  parent,  and  could,  therefore,  enter 
into  a  parent's  feelings.  He  determined  to 
take  the  children  to  Carlisle,  Pennsylvania. 

On  the  21st  of  September,  1763fhe  had 
them  again  put  into  the  government  wa- 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  1G5 

gons,  and,  taking  with  him  plenty  of  pro- 
visions  and  clothing  and  a  strong  escort,  he 
started  on  his  second  mission  of  mercy.  In 
thirteen  days  he  reached  Carlisle.  This 
shows  how  slowly  and  tenderly  he  traveled 
with  his  precious  freight.  This  was  a  work 
of  such  importance,  and  he  was  so  deeply 
interested  in  the  wrelfare  of  these  children, 
that  he  could  not  give  the  work  over  into 
the  hands  of  his  officers,  but  must  see  it 
done  himself.  Noble  fellow !  And  did  not 
many  a  mother  bless  him  to  her  latest 
breath  ? 

When  he  arrived  at  Carlisle  a  deep  in- 
terest was  awakened  in  that  little  village  in 
behalf  of  these  children.  Everybody  wTent 
out  to  the  garrison  to  see  them  and  to  pity  the 
poor  things.  Colonel  Boquet  had  a  notice 
published  in  ail  the  papers  then  issued  in 
Eastern  Pennsylvania,  that  so  many  chil- 
dren had  been  taken  from  the  Indians,  and 
that  all  parents  who  had  lost  their  children 
during  the  last  fifteen  years  should  come  to 
Carlisle  and  see  wdiether  their  lost  ones 
were  among  them. 

In  Carlisle  Regina  found  persons  who 


166 


regina;  or, 


could  .-peak  Gorman,  and  slie  began  to 
think  she  could  not  be  far  from  her  mo- 
ther; but,  alas!  poor  thing,  she  could  not 
tell  any  person  in  German  where  her  mo- 
ther lived.  She  recollected  that  they  lived 
among  the  mountains, — and  the  mountain 
back  of  Carlisle  seemed  familiar  to  her; 
and  when  she  was  asked  in  German  where 
she  had  lived,  she  pointed  toward  the 
mountains. —  for  she  still  understood  the 
German,  though  she  could  not  speak  it. 

She  was  much  interested  in  the  new  ob- 
jects she  saw;  for  there  was  more  finery 
and  fashion  then  in  Carlisle  than  in  Fort 
Pitt.  She  had  pretty  good  clothes,  too,  and 
plenty  to  eat — bread  and  meat  and  milk. 
In  those  days  very  little  coffee  and  tea  were 
used. 

One  of  the  corporals  could  speak  the  In- 
dian language,  and  he  acted  as  interpreter 
between  the  children  and  Colonel  Boquet 
and  those  who  came  to  hunt  up  their  lost 
children.  One  day,  a  gentleman  came  to 
look  for  a  daughter  who  had  been  lost  fif- 
teen years ;  and  he  thought,  as  Regina  was 
cue  of  the  oldest,  that  perhaps  she  was  his 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  1GT 

daughter.  But  on  a  closer  examination  he 
found  that  he  was  mistaken — as  his  daugh- 
ter had  black  eyes  and  Regina's  were 
blue.  She  informed  the  interpreter,  on 
this  occasion,  as  well  as  she  could,  how  she 
had  fallen  into  the  hands  of  the  Indians, 
and  that  she  had  only  her  mother  and 
one  brother  left,  but  did  not  recollect 
where  she  had  lived,  or  what  her  mother's 
or  father's  name  had  been,  only  that  her 
father's  name  was  John.  She  also  told  him 
her  Indian  name,  which  was  Sawquehanna; 
and  her  former  name,  which  she  said  was 
Regina,  which,  however,  she  did  not  pro- 
nounce correctly  as  we  pronounce  it  in 
English.  She  pronounced  it  Raghena,  half 
German  and  half  Indian.  The  interpreter 
asked  if  this  was  the  name  by  which  her 
mother  used  to  call  her.  She  said  it  was. 
This  fact  was  communicated  to  Colonel  Bo- 
quet,  who  made  an  entry  of  it  in  his  book, 
for  he  looked  upon  this  as  a  clue  to  her 
parentage.  For  one  of  the  first  questions 
the  parents  generally  asked  was,  What  are 
the  names  of  the  children  ?  But  some  were 
so  young  that  they  did  not  know  their  own 


168 


kbgina;  or. 


names.  They  all  ha  J  Indian  names,  which 
they  recollected. 

Poor  Eegina  asked  the  interpreter  whe- 
ther she  would  ever  see  her  mother  again  ? 
and  how  long  it  would  be?  and  a  hundred 
other  questions,  which  he,  of  course,  could 
not  answer.  She  now.  as  she  saw  one 
child  after  another  claimed  and  carried 
away  by  fond  parents,  began  to  feel  more 
and  more  anxious  to  see  her  mother, 
^vvhen  the  women  eame  to  the  garrison  to 
look  for  their  children  she  always  looked 
for  her  mother.  She  was  not  sure  that  she 
would  know  her. 

Eegina  now  felt  more  lost  than  ever. 
She  had  no  home  —  not  even  the  rude  hut 
of  her  old  and  ill-natured  Indian  mistress. 
It  is  true.  Susan  was  her  constant  com- 
panion ;  but  Eegina  thought  that  perhaps 
the  parents  of  Susan  would  come  and  claim 
her,  and  then  they  would  be  separated  — 
perhaps  forever.  The  very  thought  of  be- 
ing separated  from  Susan  was  painful. 
And  when  she,  one  day,  mentioned  her 
fears  to  Susan,  the  little  girl  wept  and 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  TIIE  LOWLY.  161) 


clung  closely  to  her  and  said, — "  No,  no; 
you  must  not  leave  me.  I  will  go  with  you 
and  stay  where  you  stay.  We  will  eat 
hominy  together,  and  sleep  together,  and 
sing  and  pray  together." 


no 


regina;  or, 


CHAPTER  X. 

THE  MOTHER. 

HOME    OF   THE   LONELY  WIDOW  IX   THE    MOUNTAINS — Tnr, 

STRONG  AND  UNDYING  AF~'fcOTION  OF  A  FOND  MOTHER  

HER  THOUGHTS  OF  THE  LOTED,  THE  LOST,  THE  ABSENT, 
AND  THE  DEAD. 

After  Mrs.  Hartman  returned  from  her 
long  journey  to  Fort  Fitt,  she  thought  she 
had  now  done  all  she  could  to  recover  her 
lost  Regina,  and  she  would  now  wait  and 
see  what  God  would  do.  She  heard 
nothing  of  her  daughter,  and  yet  she  was 
strongly  impressed  with  the  thought  that 
she  would  yet  see  her;  hut  where,  or  how, 
she  knew  not.  Every  thing  was  in  God's 
hands,  and  he  would  so  order  affiurs  that 
she  would  yet  find  her.  Her  prayers  were 
constantly  going  up  to  the  eternal  throne  in 
behalf  of  Regina.    Those  prayers  would  he 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  171 


heard.  She  knew  that  God  would  hear 
prayer,  and,  in  his  own  good  time,  answer 
it  to  the  joy  and  comfort  of  her  heart.  The 
whole  Bible  is  full  of  the  evidences  that 
God  hears  prayer.  Mrs.  Hartman  had  read 
her  Bible  with  care,  and  in  it  she  found 
many  instances  where  God  had  answered 
prayer,  and  this  gave  her  encouragement 
and  hope.  She  became  more  fervent  in 
prayer. 

In  looking  over  the  passages  she  had 
marked  in  the  Bible,  she  found  that  when 
Abraham's  servant  prayed  in  Mesopotamia, 
while  he  was  yet  speaking  Rebecca  made 
her  appearance.  (Gen.  xxiv.  12.)  When 
Jacob  wrestled  with  an  angel  of  God  at 
Jabbok,  Esau's  mind  was  changed.  (Gen. 
xxxii.  24.)  When  Moses,  the  man  of  God, 
prayed  at  Eephiclim,  Israel  prevailed  against 
Amalek.  (Ex.  xvii.  8.)  When  Joshua  prayed, 
the  sun  stood  still ;  and  he  prays  again, 
and  Achan  is  discovered.  When  Hannah 
prayed,  God  heard  and  gave  her  a  son. 
David  prayed,  and  Ahithophel  hung  him- 
self. When  Asa  prayed,  God  gave  him  a 
great  victory  over  his   enemies.  Daniel 


kegen'a;  ok. 


prayed  in  the  Hod's  den,  and  God  shut  np 
their  mouths.  The  three  Hebrew  children 
prayed  in  the  furnace,  and  the  flames  did 
not  hurt  them.  Mordeeai  and  Esther  fast 
and  pray,  and  the  enemy  of  God  s  people 
^Hainan)  is  hanged  on  a  gallows  fifty  cubits 
high.  Elijah  prays,  and  no  rain  falls  for 
three  years  and  a  half:  he  prays  again,  and 
a  torrent  of  rain  descends.  Elisha  prays, 
the  river  Jordan  is  divided ;  he  prays  again, 
the  son  of  the  Shunammite  returns  to  life. 
When  the  church  at  Jerusalem  prayed, 
Peter  was  delivered  from  prison.  (Acts  xii. 
5.)  Paul  aud  Silas  prayed  at  midnight, 
and  the  foundation  of  the  prison  is  shaken. 
These  things  Mrs.  Hartman  recollected,  and 
had  great  confidence  in  prayer. 

Oh.  what  has  not  prayer  accomplished  ? 
In  the  language  of  another. — **  Prayer  has 
i.I:t.~1  led  seas,  rolled  up  flowing  rivers,  made 
flinty  rocks  gush  into  flowing  fountains, 
quenched  flames  of  fire,  muzzled  lions,  dis- 
armed vipers,  marshaled  the  stars  against 
the  wicked,  stopped  the  course  of  the  moon, 
arrested  the  sun  in  his  swift  race,  hurst 
open  iron  gates,  recalled  souls  from  eter- 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  173 


nity,  conquered  the  strongest  devils,  com- 
manded legions  of  angels  down  from  hea- 
ven !  Prayer  has  bridled  and  chained  the 
raging  passions  of  men,  and  has  routed  and 
destroyed  vast  armies  of  proud  and  daring 
infidels  and  atheists." 

Mrs.  Hartman  knew  that  prayer  had 
brought  Jonah  from  the  bottom  of  the  sea, 
and  had  taken  Elijah  to  heaven  on  a  chariot 
of  fire,  and  she  believed  that  prayer  could 
bring  back  her  lost  daughter.  Hence,  she 
prayed  most  importunately  to  God  for  the 
recovery  of  Eegina.  JSTor  did  she  pray  in 
vain.  God  heard  the  widow's  sighs  and 
groans. 

We  cannot  forbear  inserting  a  quotation 
here  from  the  pen  of  the  Tlev.  W.  E.  Wil- 
liams, D.D.,  of  New  York,  which  is  beauti- 
ful and  eloquent,  and  seems  to  point  to  just 
such  a  lowly  cottage,  buried  in  a  deep  forest, 
as  Mrs.  Hartman 's  was* 

"And  how  vast  the  range  of  blessing 
your  prayers  may  take  !  Who  can  tell  the 
history  or  trace  the  wanderings  of  yon  cloud 
that  sails  in  light  and  glory  across  the  sky,  or 
indicate  from  what  source  its  bosom  has  been 

15* 


TO 


REGIXA  ;  OR, 


filled  with  the  vapor?  it  is  vet  to  shed  back 
upon  the  earth  ?  Perhaps,  though  now  wan- 
dering over  the  tilled  field  and  the  peopled 
Tillage,  its  stores  were  drawn  from  some 
shaded  fountain  in  the  deep  forest,  where 
the  eye  of  man  has  scarce  ever  penetrated. 
In  silent  obscurity  that  fountain  yielded  its 
pittance,  and  did  its  work  of  preparing  to 
bless  the  far-off  lands  that  shall  yet  he  glad 
for  it.  And  even  thus  it  is  with  prayer. 
Little  do  we  know  often  of  the  secret  origin 
of  the  dews  of  blessing  that  descend  on  the 
churches  of  God.  In  the  recesses  of  some 
lowly  cottage — in  the  depths  of  some  hum- 
ble heart — may  be  going  on  the  work  of 
pious  intercession,  in  answer  to  which  the 
grace  of  heaven  descends  on  us  and  on  our 
children,  on  the  labors  of  the  wondering 
and  joyful  pastor,  and  on  the  hearts  of  the 
far-off  heathen,  until  the  wilderness  and  the 
solitary  places  are  glad  for  them.  The  time 
is  to  come  when  from  every  home  such 
prayer  shall  arise.  Let  us  sustain  and 
swell,  in  our  day,  the  ascending  volume  of 
supplication  that  is  jet  to  roll  around  the 
globe,  and  never  to  fail  until  over  a  world 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  175 

regenerated  and  purified  the  morning  stars 
shall  again  shout  for  joy,  and  the  earth, 
emerging  from  her  long  and  disastrous 
eclipse  of  sin  and  wrath,  shall  yet  again 
walk  the  heavens  in  her  unsullied  bright- 
ness." 

The  pious  Germans  are  firm  believers  in 
God's  special  providence  and  interposition. 
Some  think  they  carry  the  matter  too  far. 
Henry  Yung  Stilling  has  had  a  powerful 
influence,  by  his  numerous  works,  over  the 
pious  German  mind.  Indeed,  all  their 
pious  writers  inculcate  a  strong  and  firm 
belief  in  a  very  special  providence.  But 
Mrs.  Hartman  loved  to  think  that  the  God 
she  adored  would,  somehow  or  other,  inter- 
pose in  her  behalf  and  restore  her  child. 
Ah!  little  did  that  pious  heart,  buried  in 
the  dismal  gloom  of  a  dark  forest  in 
America,  think  that  her  humble  prayers 
were  moving  the  hand  that  moved  the 
universe ! 

Yet  so  it  was.  God  influenced  the  hearts 
of  the  English  officers  to  appeal  to  the  gov- 
ernment, to  prosecute  a  vigorous  war  against 
the  French;  and,  when  the  French  were 


170 


kegixa;  or, 


overcome,  their  allies  (the  Indians)  became 
powerless.  Thus,  not  only  the  prayers,  but 
also  the  heroic  conduct,  of  this  devoted  mo- 
ther in  going  to  Fort  Pitt  in  search  of  her 
lost  daughter,  had  their  effect.  Her  labor 
was  not  in  vain  in  the  Lord. 

As  her  long-absent  and  lost  daughter  had 
often  asked  herself  the  question,  M  "Would  I 
know  my  mother  if  I  were  to  see  her?"  so 
the  mother  often  asked  herself  the  question, 
""WouM  I  know  my  lost  daughter  even  if  I 
were  to  see  her?"  And  she  called  up  in 
her  imagination  her  beautiful  and  lovely 
daughter  as  she  looked  when  she  was  ten 
years  old.  Her  fair,  transparent  skin,  with 
its  carmine  tints  ;  her  large,  full,  round  blue 
eyes:  her  fine,  glossy  hair:  her  fat,  round 
form,  and  her  dimpled  chin, — all  rose  up  in 
her  imagination  like  a  beautiful  ambro- 
type.  And  she  loved  to  gaze  on  this  beau- 
tiful re-creation  of  her  lovely  daughter. 
But  then  she  reflected,  as  she  was  now 
nineteen  years  old,  how  changed  she  must 
be.  Perhaps  her  complexion  has  faded,  the 
form  of  her  expression  changed,  and  her 
once  happy  spirit  broken.    Deep  emotion 


TRUE  FIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  177 

would  not  permit  her  to  dwell  on  this  pain- 
ful subject.  And  she  consoled  herself  with 
the  reflection  that  she  was  in  the  hands  of 
God,  and  that  he  would  take  care  of  her. 

Thus  things  moved  on  during  the  sum- 
mer. The  widow  and  her  son  had  been 
busy.  Aud  as  the  fall  was  now  again 
closing  in  upon  her, — that  melancholy  sea- 
son, in  which  she  had  met  with  all  her  mis- 
fortunes,— when  she  saw  the  sere  and  yel- 
low leaf  of  autumn,  she  could  not  but  think 
of  the  terrible  scenes  of  nine  years  before, 
when  her  husband  was  murdered  and  her 
children  were  carried  away. 

One  day,  when  she  was  in  a  gloomy  and 
melancholy  mood,  having  thought  a  great 
deal  about  her  daughter,  Christian  came 
"running  to  the  house  and  told  his  mother 
that  a  gentleman  was  riding  up  the  lane 
toward  the  house  on  a  gray  horse,  and  he 
wondered  who  he  was.  The  widow  stood 
at  the  window  and  looked  out.  She  saw 
him  coming  past  the  stable ;  but  he  was  a 
stranger.  He  rode  to  the  fence,  dis- 
mounted, hitched  his  horse,  and  came 
into  the  house.     When   he  came  in  he 


178 


regina;  or, 


inquired  whether  this  was  the  place 
where  the  widow  Hartman  lived?  She 
answered  in  the  affirmative.  She  won- 
dered what  he  conlcl  possibly  have  come 
for;  it  was  very  seldom  that  a  stranger 
came  into  that  lonely  region.  As  it  was 
near  noon,  Mrs.  Hartman,  with  true  Ger- 
man hospitality,  proposed  to  have  his  horse 
put  in  the  stable,  and  said  she  would  get 
him  his  dinner.  Christian  then  took  his 
horse  to  the  stable  and  gave  him  a  good 
feed,  and,  after  some  time,  a  good  and  sub- 
stantial dinner  was  prepared  for  the  stran- 
ger. The  widow  was  still  in  suspense  as  to 
the  stranger's  business.  Her  curiosity  was, 
of  course,  awakened;  but  she  was  too 
sensible  a  woman  to  be  rude  in  asking 
questions.  But,  while  sitting  at  the  table, 
she  ventured  to  ask  him  if  was  going  any 
further  up  the  valley?  He  replied,  no;  but 
that  he  intended  to  return  that  same  day  to 
Tulpehocken.  And,  without  keeping  her 
in  suspense  any  longer,  he  informed  her 
that  the  Rev.  Mr.  Kurtz,  then  pastor  of  the 
Lutheran  church  at  Tulpehocken,  (where 
the  Rev.  L.  Eggers  now  resides,)  had  sent 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  170 

him  over  to  let  her  know  that  Colonel  Boquet 
had  brought  a  large  number  of  children — who 
were  taken  from  the  Indians — to  Carlisle,  and, 
perhaps,  her  lost  daughter  might  be  among  them. 
"  This  is  my  only  business,"  said  he.  I  can- 
not describe  the  tumultuous  thoughts  and 
feelings  of  the  poor  mother's  heart!  She 
could  not  speak  for  a  few  moments ;  the 
blood  rushed  to  her  face,  and  then  back  to 
her  heart,  and  she  almost  fainted.  The 
first  words  she  could  utter  were,  "  God  bless 
you!  God  bless  you  and  Parson  Kurtz! 
My  daughter  is  there ; — I  know  it,  I  know 
it!  My  prayers  have  been  heard,  thank 
the  Lord!  I  knew  he  would  hear  me." 
And  thus  she  went  on  for  some  time.  The 
stranger,  whose  name  I  have  forgotten, 
tried  to  comfort  her,  and,  after  some  time, 
mounted  his  horse  and  returned. 

No  doubt  that  man  felt  happy  that  day. 
And  when  he  laid  his  head  upon  his  pil- 
low at  night,  and  thought  of  the  joy  he 
had  carried  to  that  poor  widow's  heart,  he 
felt  that  acts  of  kindness  have  their  own  re- 
ward. To  do  good  to  others  is  to  be  happy 
ourselves. 


ISO 


REGIXA  ;  OR, 


The  widow  had  made  up  her  mind  at 
onee  what  she  would  do.  She  would  go 
that  same  afternoon  to  a  neighbor's  and 
borrow  another  horse, — for  she  had  only 
one.  Christian  would  ride  one  and  she 
the  other;  then  they  could  bring  Regina 
back.  For,  from  the  first  momeut  she 
heard  of  the  children  being  at  Carlisle,  she 
felt  confident  that  her  lost  daughter  was 
among  them.  Her  arrangements  were  soon 
made.  A  neighbor-woman  promised  to  go 
over  to  her  house  every  day  and  see  that 
every  thing  was  right,  and  feed  the  ani- 
mals she  had  about  her.  They  were  ready 
long  before  day  next  morning,  but  did  not 
start  until  the  gray  light  began  to  shoot  up 
the  eastern  sky. 

Mrs.  Hartman  knew  the  road  to  Carlisle, 
as  she  had  passed  through  it  on  her  way  to 
Fort  Fitt.  The  first  day  they  came  to  a 
tarm-house,  near  the  place  where  Lebanon 
now  stands.  The  second  day  they  came  to 
Harris's  Ferry;  from  this  latter  place  they 
had  only  twenty  miles  to  Carlisle.  Early 
in  the  morning,  directed  by  Mr.  Harris, 
they  forded  the  Susquehanna  river,  which 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  181 


was  then  very  low,  and  soon  turned  their 
faces  toward  Carlisle.  As  they  approached 
Carlisle  the  widow  became  very  much  ex- 
cited. Her  daughter — her  long-lost  daugh- 
ter ; — would  she  know  her  daughter  ?  would 
her  daughter  know  her?  were  questions 
that  crowded  upon  her  mind. 

She  was  absorbed  in  these  reflections, 
and  scarcely  heard  the  numerous  questions 
which  Christian  asked  her  about  the  strange 
things  he  saw.  At  last  he  looked  up,  and, 
pointing  up  in  the  air  a  good  piece  ahead, 
he  inquired,  "What  is  that,  mother?" 
She  looked  up  and  saw  the  British  flag,  as 
it  waved  over  the  garrison.  She  knew  it, 
for  she  had  seen  it  before,  both  at  Fort  Pitt 
and  at  Carlisle.  "  That,"  she  replied,  "is 
Carlisle;  we  will  now  soon  be  there." 
They  were  then  about  two  miles  off,  on  the 
old  Trindle  Spring  Road.  They  hastened 
on;  and,  about  two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon, 
they  reached  the  town. 

They  went  to  a  tavern, — a  stone  house  in 
the  center  of  the  town, — where  they  dis- 
mounted ;  but  the  landlord  could  not  speak  . 
German.    There  was  a  German,  however, 

16 


182 


BflQSfA;  OR, 


in  the  house,  who  acted  as  interpreter. 
She  soon  made  her  business  known,  and 
every  one  seemed  to  take  an  interest  in  as- 
s:s::ng  her.  They  did  not  want  any  thing 
to  eat,  for  they  had  taken  dinner  some  six 
or  seven  miles  from  Carlisle.  The  widow 
was  anxious  at  once  to  see  the  good  Colo- 
nel Boquet.  She  asked  the  German  man  at 
the  inn  to  go  with  her. 

Her  feelings  cannot  be  described.  Xone 
but  a  mother,  placed  in  similar  circum- 
stances, can  enter  fully  into  her  feelings. 
She  first  went  to  Colonel  Boquet,  and  told 
him  (through  the  interpreter)  all  about  her 
daughter: — how  long  she  had  been  absent, 
how  old  she  was,  how  she  looked ;  but  such 
a  child  as  she  described  was  not  there. 
The  colonel,  it  seems,  had  forgotten  the 
name  (Hegina)  which  he  had  recorded  in 
his  book. 

After  some  conversation  he  took  her  into 
a  large  room,  into  which  he  had  ordered  all 
the  captives  to  be  taken.  There  they  were, 
all  looking  cheerful  and  happy.  Mrs.  Hart- 
man  walked  in  and  looked  all  around  for  her 
child :  but.  alas !  she  was  not  there.  She 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  183 

had  the  image  of  Regina  engraved  upon 
her  heart  as  she  appeared  nine  years  before, 
when  she  was  a  child.  She  passed  through 
the  room  three  or  four  times,  and  minutely 
examined  the  thirty  girls  that  were  there ; 
but  there  was  not  one  that  seemed  to  bear 
any  resemblance  to  Regina.  There  was 
one  there  that  she  addressed  in  German ; 
but  the  poor  child  did  not  understand  her. 
It  was  only  then  that  she  was  informed  that 
the  children  could  speak  no  other  than  the 
Indian  language.  With  a  sad  heart  she 
was  leaving  the  room,  when  she  met  the 
large,  lustrous,  blue  eyes  of  what  she 
thought  was  a  stately  Indian  girl.  She  did 
not  speak  to  her,  but  passed  on. 

It  was  now  near  night;  and  she  had 
come  to  the  conclusion  that  her  daughter 
was  not  there.  And  when  Colonel  Boquet 
informed  her  that  he  had  taken  all  the  chil- 
dren from  the  Indians,  she  came  to  the  con- 
clusion that  Regina  was  dead;  and,  if  so,  it 
was  her  duty  to  submit  to  the  will  of  God. 
All  her  joyful  anticipations  of  meeting  her 
long-lost  child  were  now  blasted.  Hope, 
which  had  long  borue  her  up,  now  sick- 


184 


regina;  or, 


ened  and  died.  She  went  to  the  tavern, 
but  had  no  appetite  to  eat. 

When  she  retired  to  her  bed  that  night,  it 
was  not  to  sleep,  but  to  spend  a  night  of 
agony.  She  prayed,  and  wept,  and  prayed 
again,  until  she  became  calm  and  tranquil. 

In  the  morning  she  had  made  up  her 
mind  that  she  would  leave  Carlisle.  It  was 
no  use  to  stay  any  longer.  She  had  seen 
all  the  girls,  and  she  was  sure  Regina  was 
not  there.  "When  she  was  about  to  start, 
the  German  man  at  the  tavern  told  her  that 
a  great  many  people  were  coming  that  day 
for  their  children,  and  that  the  children 
were  to  be  paraded  in  the  center  of  the 
town  at  nine  o'clock,  and  that  she  had  bet- 
ter remain.  Although,  she  said,  she  knew 
her  child  was  not  there,  yet  it  would  do  her 
heart  good  to  see  other  parents  rinding  their 
lost  children,  and  she  would  remain.  She 
did  remain,  and  the  result  you  shall  soon 
see. 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  185 


CHAPTER  XI. 

THE  DAUGHTER. 

THE  WIDOW'S   TOILS   AND  LABORS    REWARDED  —  THE  LOST 
FOUND  —  THE  MEANS  OF  THE  DISCOVERY — A  THRILLING 

SCENE — REGINA  IN  HER  FOND  MOTHER'S  ARMS  HAPPY, 

HAPPY  MOTHER! 

Carlisle  was  all  in  commotion.  A  large 
number  of  strangers  were  in  town,  many 
of  whom  had  come  to  see  the  rescued  cap- 
tives, and  others  had  come  to  seek  their 
long-lost  children. 

About  nine  o'clock  in  the  morning — be- 
ing a  bright,  clear,  and  lovely  day  in  Sep- 
tember, neither  too  cold  nor  too  warm — a 
noise  and  bustle  were  heard,  accompanied  by 
the  shrill  fife  and  the  tap  of  the  drum.  Mrs. 
Hartman  and  Christian  looked  out  of  the 
window,  and  there  were  the  children,  es- 
corted by  a  platoon  of  soldiers,  coming  up 
the  street  from  the  garrison,  with  Colonel 

16* 


~T:. 


Boquet  at  their  head.  They  were  brought 
up  into  one  of  those  beautiful  squares  for 
which  Carlisle  is  noted.  The  largest  and 
finest-looking  boys  and  girls  were  in  front 
and  the  smaller  ones  in  the  rear.  Eegina 
was  in  the  foremost  rank  and  Susan  in  the 
rear.  Poor  little  Susan  almost  broke  her 
heart  when  she  was  separated  from  Regina. 
She  could  not  understand  why  she  dare  not 
walk  with  Regina.  But  the  colonel  had 
his  notions  formed  on  the  most  approved 
principles  of  military  tactics,  and  so  he 
would  have  it.  The  girls  were  all  neatly 
dressed — every  thing  but  bonnets.  Instead 
of  bonnets  the  colonel  had  given  each  girl 
a  fine  red  handkerchief,  which  they  were 
ordered  to  put  over  their  heads ;  although 
those  poor  girls,  who  had  been  so  long 
among  the  Indians,  did  not  consider  it  any 
great  favor  to  have  the  head  protected 
either  from  the  sun  or  the  cold.  The 
boys  had  hats  on,  and  were  all  dressed  like 
little  soldiers.  When  the  colonel  had 
brought  them  to  the  public  square,  he 
placed  them  on  a  beautiful  green,  between 
the  old  court-house  and  the  old  stone 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  187 

church,  facing  the  present  railroad.  The 
ground  is  now  enclosed  with  iron  railing,  as 
the  court-house  yard.  This  was  a  novel 
sight,  to  see  so  many  children  that  had  been 
so  long  among  the  Indians.  All  the  people 
in  town  went  to  see  them. 

A  number  of  parents  were  there,  looking 
with  anxious  eyes  over  the  company  of  cap- 
tives. Every  now  and  then  some  father  or 
mother,  and  sometimes  both,  would  be 
made  happy  by  finding  a  long-lost  child. 
On  such  occasions  the  assembled  multitude 
would  join  in  the  shout  of  joy;  for  every 
time  a  child  was  recognised  by  its  parents 
a  shout  would  be  uttered.  Poor  Mrs. 
Hartman  was,  of  course,  glad  to  see  this. 
Some  twenty  or  thirty  children  were  that 
day  recognised. 

At  length,  about  noon,  Mrs.  Hartman 
made  up  her  mind  that  she  would  start  off 
and  go  as  far  as  Harris's  Ferry  that  night. 
While  she  was  standing  at  the  head  of  the 
captives,  she  could  not  help  looking  at  the 
fine,  tall,  Indian-looking  girl  with  the  large 
blue  eyes.  She  passed  and  repassed  her 
frequently,  and  she  noticed  that  the  Indian 


188 


regixa;  or, 


girl  was  looking  at  her;  but  here  the  mat- 
ter ended,  'While  standing  there, — look- 
ing at  the  stately  Indian  girl,  and  as  she 
was  just  about  to  leave  the  ground. — Colo- 
nel Boquet,  with  the  interpreter,  came  up 
to  her  and  addressed  her,  and  asked  her 
whether  she  could  see  nothing  of  her 
daughter?  She  replied,  in  sobs,  that  her 
daughter  was  not  there.  The  colonel  then 
inquired  whether  there  were  no  marks 
upon  her  by  which  she  could  recognise 
her?  She  could  recollect  none.  He  then 
asked  her  whether  she  did  not  recollect 
some  songs  or  hymns  that  her  daughter 
might  have  heard  her  sing  before  her  cap- 
tivity. She  said,  yes :  her  daughter  was  a 
good  German  singer,  and  they  had  often 
sung  the  hymn — 

*  Allein..  und  doch  nicht  ganz  allein, 
Bin  ich — " 

In  English. — 

"Alone,  and  yet  not  all  alone,  am  I." 

"'Well,''  says  the  colonel,  '-now  suppose 
you  just  sing  that  hymn.     Start  here,  at 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.      18 !» 

the  head  of  the  company,  and  I  will  walk 
with  you,  and  you  shall  sing  the  iiymn 
that  you  and  your  daughter  used  to  sing 
together;  and  if  she  is  here  it  will  awaken 
the  right  chord.  She  has  not  forgotten 
those  early  songs." 

Mrs.  Hartman  said  it  was  no  use.  Her 
daughter  was  not  there,  and  the  English 
people  would  only  laugh  at  her  German 
singing.  But  the  colonel  insisted  upon  it. 
So  she  took  off  her  bonnet,  at  the  colo- 
nel's request.  She  was  standing  near  the 
head  of  the  little  army  of  captives.  She 
commenced,  with  a  clear,  loud,  and  tremu- 
lous voice, — 

"Allein,  und  doch  nicht  ganz  allein, 
Bin  ich — " 

("Alone,  and  yet  not  all  alone,  am  I.") 

The  eyes  of  all  were  directed  toward  her. 
She  had  come  to  the  second  line,  when  a 
shrill,  sharp  sound  w7as  heard.  It  came 
from  the  tall  Indian-looking  girl  with  the 
large  blue  eyes.  The  next  moment  she 
was  i  _  her  mother's  arms  !     The  mother 


190 


regina;  or, 


looked  wild  with  amazement;  but  she 
knew  it  was  her  daughter,  for  she  joined 
her  mother  in  singing.  But  the  singing 
was  soon  stopped ;  and  a  great  crowd  soon 
gathered  round ;  and,  when  matters  were 
fairly  understood,  a  shout  of  joy  went  forth 
from  the  assembled  multitude  that  made 
the  welkin  ring. 

The  mother's  joy  was  like  that  of  Per- 
icles, the  Prince  of  Tyre,  who,  accord- 
ing to  Shakspeare,  when  he  found  his 
lost  daughter  Marina,  called  upon  the 
gods  (for  he  was  a  heathen)  to  keep  the 
sea  of  joy  from  bursting  the  shores  of  his 
mortality.  So  it  was  with  this  poor 
widow.  She  had  now  found  her  long-lost 
daughter. 

When  little  Susan  saw  what  was  going 
on,  she  came  to  Regina  and  refused  to 
leave  her;  and,  as  there  were  none  to 
claim  her,  Colonel  Boquet  permitted  Re- 
gina to  take  her  along. 

Mrs.  Hartman  made  up  her  mind  to  re- 
main in  Carlisle  that  night,  and  to  start 
early  in  the  morning  for  her  home.  How 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  191 

they  got  home,  and  how  they  got  along 
at  home,  you  will  see  in  the  next  chap- 
ter. Never  was  there  a  happier  family. 
The  dead  were  alive,  and  the  lost  were 
found. 


192 


KEG  in  a:  ok. 


CHAPTER  XH. 

REGINA  AT  HOME  AGAIN. 

HER    HABITS  —  HER    AWKWARD    PREDICAMENT  HOW  SHE 

LEARNED  GERMAN  THE    SECOND  TIME  HER  IMPERFECT 

RELIGION  HER  TRUE  CONVERSION  TO  GOD  —  HER  CON- 
NECTION   WITH    THE    LUTHERAN  CHURCH  MRS.  HART- 

MAN'S  CUP  OF  JOY  FULL  HEAVEN  UPON  EARTH  RELI- 
GION THE  BEST  OF  ALL. 

We  last  saw  Regina  in  the  arms  of  her 
affectionate  mother  in  the  public  square  at 
Carlisle.  Airs.  Hartman  did  not  speak  to 
her  daughter  immediately.  More  than  this, 
there  was  such  a  crowd  gathered  around 
the  mother  and  daughter,  that  they  had  no 
opportunity  to  converse ;  and  they  were  so 
overwhelmed  with  joy  that  mere  words 
were  entirely  inadequate  to  convey  their 
thoughts  to  each  other.  There  is  a  lan- 
guage far  more  expressive  than  words;  the 
deep  and  silent  gaze  of  affection  reaches 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  193 


into  the  heart  to  an  extent  that  words  never 
could.  Mrs.  Hartman  was  wild  —  yea,  al- 
most frantic  with  delight,  and  Regina 
was  in  the  same  happy  mood.  It  was  a 
moment  of  exquisite  joy,  and  almost  com- 
pensated her  for  the  hardships  and  sor- 
rows she  had  endured  in  her  long  cap- 
tivity. 

When  her  mother  went  to  the  tavern, 
which  was  close  by,  Regina  followed  her. 
They  went  into  a  private  room.  JSTo  one  was 
there  but  Mrs.  Hartman,  Regina,  Susan, 
Colonel  Boquet,  and  Christian.  The  mo- 
ther then  first  addressed  her  daughter,  but 
got  no  answer.  This  affected  her  heart 
very  much,  and  she  wept  when  she  found 
her  daughter  did  not  speak  to  her.  Even 
then  the  dark  thought  rapidly  flitted 
through  her  mind, — "  Perhaps,  after  all,  it 
is  not  Regina;"  but,  no,  it  must  be  she. 
How  else  could  she  have  sung — 

"Alone,  and  yet  not  all  alone,  am  I"? 

And  then  there  were  her  large,  full,  blue 
eyes, — the  only  part  of  her  beautiful  coun- 
tenance that  the  rude  Indian  habits  could 
17 


194 


BEGIN  A;  OR, 


not  mar  or  destroy ;  and  the  mother  went 
up  to  her  and  parted  her  dark-brown, 
coarse-looking  hair,  and  under  that  saw  the 
vestiges  of  her  once  beautiful  auburn  hair. 

Regina  attempted  to  speak  to  her  mo- 
ther, but  could  not.  She  had  forgotten 
how  to  frame  and  pronounce  words  in  Ger- 
man. She  had  picked  up  a  few  French 
words  from  a  young  Indian  woman,  who 
had  come  from  Canada,  and  who  lived 
near  her  in  Xew  York.  She  could  say 
nothing  but  "ma  chere  mere,  ma  chere 
mere" — "  my  dear  mother,  my  dear  mother;" 
but  this  was  all  Greek  to  Mrs.  Hartman. 
At  last,  she  asked  her  whether  she  could 
not  talk  German  any  more.  She  shook  her 
head.  Mrs.  Hartman  then  began  to  see 
how  matters  stood, — viz. :  that  Regina  had 
forgotten  how  to  speak  German.  Colonel 
Boquet  had  sent  for  his  Canadian  German, 
who  could  speak  English,  German,  and  In- 
dian, and  had  a  long  conversation  with  Re- 
gina and  her  mother,  until  he  was  fully  satis- 
fied that  Mrs.  Hartman  had  really  found 
her  daughter.  Of  course,  Regina  remained 
with  her  mother,  and  they  talked  by  signs. 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  195 

Mrs.  Hartman  asked  her  if  she  knew  Chris- 
tian ?  she  shook  her  head. 

They  ate  their  supper;  and  Susan — hav- 
ing been  put  under  Mrs.  Hartman's  eare 
until  she  should  be  claimed,  of  course 
became  one  of  the  Hartman  family.  At 
night,  when  they  retired  to  rest,  as  the 
tavern  was  pretty  well  thronged,  Mrs.  Hart- 
man, Regina,  and  Susan  had  to  occupy  one 
bed.  Before  they  retired  Mrs.  Hartman 
kneeled  down  with  the  girls  and  prayed. 
She  poured  out  her  heart  to  God  in 
thankfulness.  But  they  had  been  in  bed 
a  very  little  time  until  Regina  and  Susan 
got  up,  which  somewhat  alarmed  Mrs. 
Hartman,  until  by  signs  and  motions  she 
was  made  to  understand  that  they  could 
not  sleep  in  a  bed.  The  Indians  have  no 
beds ;  they  sleep  on  skins  and  leaves,  but 
never  in  beds.  Regina  could  not  rest  in  a 
good  soft  bed ;  she,  therefore,  took  a  blan- 
ket and  spread  it  on  the  floor,  and  she  and 
Susan  slept  very  comfortably  on  the  hard 
boards.    Habit  seems  to  be  every  thing. 

Bright  and  early  Mrs.  Hartman  was  up 
the  next  morning;  and,  as  soon  as  break- 


196 


rrghta;  or, 


fast  was  over,  they  started.  Mrs.  Hartman 
took  Regina  behind  her  on  the  horse,  and 
Christian  took  Susan.  They  had  a  plea- 
sant trip  home. 

As  soon  as  it  was  known  that  Mrs.  Hart- 
man  had  found  her  daughter,  all  the  neigh- 
bors called  to  see  her,  and  congratulated 
her  on  her  good  fortune.  Her  home  now 
appeared  as  pleasant  as  ever.  God  had  re- 
stored her  daughter;  and  Mrs.  Hartman 
felt  truly  thankful  to  her  heavenly  Father 
for  his  goodness  and  mercy.  Her  life  was 
now  to  be  more  devoted  to  his  service. 

When  they  first  approached  the  house, 
Regina  recollected  the  tall  old  pine-tree 
that  stood  in  the  yard,  throwing  its  wide- 
spreading  arms  over  the  neat  little  cottage, 
and,  like  a  faithful  sentinel,  protecting  it 
from  the  sunshine  and  the  storm.  How 
Regina's  heart  leaped  for  joy  when  she  re- 
cognized this  old  companion  of  her  youth, 
under  whose  dense  foliage  she  had  so  often 
sat  and  laughed  and  played  !  AVhen  she 
first  saw  it  she  cried  out,  ••TTash-ock!  wash- 
ock  V  which  means,  the  green  tree.  She 
had  forgotten  the  German  word,  "baam" 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  197 


— tree,  and,  therefore,  used  the  Indian 
word. 

Many  amusing  scenes  might  have  been 
witnessed  between  Retina  and  the  neigh- 
bors  who  called  to  see  her.  They  could 
not  understand  how  Retina  should  have 
forgotten  the  German,  which  was  so  plain 
to  them.  An  old,  loquacious  lady  said  she 
could  make  her  talk.  She  went  up  to  her 
and  took  her  by  the  hand,  and  said,  "  Come 
now,  Regina,  let  us  talk  together;"  but 
Regina  could  not  utter  one  word  in  Ger- 
man, so  she  commenced  talking  in  the  In- 
dian language.  The  old  lady  was  fairly 
outdone,  and  gave  it  up,  confessing  that  the 
girl  had  lost  her  German.  Then  a  grave 
question  arose  among  the  party — will  Re- 
gina  ever  be  able  to  learn  the  German 
again  ?  The  matter  was  fully  discussed  ; 
and,  finally,  it  was  agreed  to  by  all,  that 
she  could  never  learn  German,  for  she 
was  too  old.  But  those  good  people  were 
not  much  acquainted  with  the  laws  of 
mind,  or  they  would  have  come  to  a  differ- 
ent conclusion.  Those  who  have  thought 
most  on  the  structure  and  constitution  of 

17* 


198 


kegina;  or, 


the  human  mind  tell  us,  that  early  impres- 
sions are  never  obliterated  or  erased  from 
the  mind,  and  what  we  call  forgetting,  is 
nothing  more  than  a  covering  up  of  the 
first  ideas.  And  the  process  of  recollection 
is  nothing  more  than  an  uncovering — some- 
thing like  unrolling  an  Egyptian  mummy. 
So  it  is  with  language ;  the  first  one  a  child 
learns  will  remain  in  the  mind,  and,  under 
proper  circumstances,  will  come  to  the 
light.  Mr.  Abercrombie,  in  his  "  Mental 
Philosophy,"  give  many  illustrations  of  this 
fact.  Dr.  Muhlenberg,  too,  says  that  he 
sometimes  met  with  Swedes  who  had  not 
spoken  their  mother-tongue  for  more  than 
half  a  century,  and  yet,  on  their  death- 
bed, they  always  prayed  in  the  Swedish 
language. 

Dr.  Rush  confirms  this  statement ;  for  he 
informs  us  that,  when  attending  persons 
who  had  not  spoken  their  mother-tongue 
for  forty,  Mty,  or  sixty  years,  the  long  lost 
language  would  invariably  return  at  the  ap- 
proach of  death,  and  they  would  sing  and 
pray  in  the  language  of  their  youth. 

Dr.  Samuel  Johnson,  it  is  said,  when  he 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY. 


109 


came  to  die,  did  not  speak  in  the  majestic 
and  lofty  language  of  his  own  creation. 
He  forgot  the  sweet  cadences  of  those  beau- 
tiful Latin  hymns  which  he  so  much  ad- 
mired, but  was  heard  to  utter  the  simple 
little  prayers  he  had  heard  and  learned  to 
lisp  at  his  mother's  knees. 

The  celebrated  Mr.  Tennent,  a  pious 
Presbyterian  preacher,  wdio  had  made  con- 
siderable progress  in  Latin,  when  he  had 
nearly  finished  his  education  fell  into  a 
trance,  and  came  very  near  being  buried 
alive.  When  he  recovered  from  his  trance 
he  had  forgotten  all  his  Latin,  and  com- 
menced to  study  it  the  second  time.  One 
day,  while  he  was  trying  to  read  a  page  in 
Cornelius  Nepos,  he  wras  startled  by  the 
rushing  of  something  through  his  brain, 
and  a  moment  after  he  recollected  all  he 
had  forgotten. 

So  with  Regina.  Her  German  was  not 
forgotten :  it  w7as  only  covered  up  under 
the  rubbish  of  the  Indian  tongue,  and,  by 
degrees,  her  knowledge  of  the  German  re- 
turned. And  when  she  found  herself  able 
to  converse  in  German,  many  and  many  an 


200 


regina;  or, 


hour  was  spent  by  the  family  in  listening 
to  her  account  of  her  hardships  and  her 
sufferings.  Her  prayers  and  hymns  she 
had  not  forgotten.  These  she  never  neg- 
lected ;  and  the  reciting  of  these  kept  the 
idea  of  an  ever-present  God  always  alive  in 
her  heart.  Oh,  how  important  it  is  that 
children  should  early  be  taught  the  true 
knowledge  of  God  even  in  their  infancy. 
God  only  knows  where  their  lot  may  be 
cast,  and  how  much  may  depend  upon  their 
knowledge  of  God.  Let  all  children  learn 
to  "know  God  and  his  Son  Jesus  Christ, 
wThom  to  know  aright  is  life  eternal." 

Regina,  as  may  very  readily  be  imagined, 
in  consequence  of  her  long  residence  among 
uncultivated  and  uncivilized  barbarians,  was 
very  awkward  in  her  manners  and  uncouth 
in  her  habits.  For  instance,  she  did  not, 
as  we  have  already  seen,  like  to  lie  on  a 
soft  bed;  she  did  not  even  like  to  sit  on 
a  chair;  she  preferred,  Indian  fashion,  to  sit 
on  the  ground.  She  could  not  bear  her 
clothes  at  all  tight  on  her  body.  'Nor  did 
she  know  how  to  use  the  knife  and  fork 
at  the  table;  and  it  was  sometime  before 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  201 


she  could  get  used  to  her  mother's  way  of 
cooking.  She  was  very  fond  of  nuts  of  all 
kinds;  and  the  acorns  of  the  white-oak, 
when  dried,  she  preferred  even  to  hickory- 
nuts.  She  showed  her  mother  how  the  In- 
dians cured  and  kept  them.  They  gathered 
them  late  in  the  fall,  put  them  in  bags  that 
wTould  hold  about  a  half-bushel,  and  hung 
them  in  the  chimney, — or,  wrhen  they  had 
no  chimney,  in  the  loft  under  the  rafters, — 
where  they  would  be  smoked.  It  is  said, 
when  thus  dried,  the  acorn  will  lose  its  bit- 
ter taste  and  become  almost  as  sweet  as  the 
chestnut. 

By  degrees,  Kegina  learned  to  speak  Ger- 
man. She  listened  very  attentively  to  the 
other  members  of  the  family;  and  in  some 
two  or  three  months  she  began  to  express 
herself  in  German.  The  blunders  she 
sometimes  made,  in  using  Indian  words 
with  her  German,  were  very  amusing. 
She  loved  to  hear  her  mother  reading,  and 
especially  in  the  Bible.  When  she  was 
able  to  converse  readily  with  her  mo- 
ther, she  wTas  very  anxious  to  know  where 
the  Bible  came  from.    And  when  her  mo- 


202 


regina;  or, 


ther  told  her  that  it  came  from  God,  she 
wanted  to  know  all  about  it; — how  God 
gave  it,  and  when,  and  to  whom?  So  her 
mother  had  to  tell  her  all  she  knew  about 
it,  which  was  not  much,  it  is  true;  but, 
still,  it  satisfied  her  curiosity.  She  told  her 
that  God  gave  the  commandments  to  the 
children  of  Israel;  that  her  old  pastor  at 
Reutlingen,  in  Germany,  when  she  went  to 
catechize,  had  explained  the  matter  to  her, 
and,  she  was  sure,  if  any  body  understood 
the  matter,  he  did.  The  fact  is,  she  was  a 
simple,  pious  child  of  God,  and  believed  all 
that  God  said  in  his  blessed  word. 
It  might  be  said  of  her, — 

"  The  terms  of  disputative  art 
Had  never  reached  her  ear; 
She  laid  her  hand  upon  her  heart, 
And  only  answered,  'Here.'  " 

When  Regina  could  speak  German  pretty 
well  again,  she  was  exceedingly  anxious  to 
be  able  to  read.  So  her  mother  and  her 
brother  Christian  taught  her,  and  Susan 
also.  They  soon  mastered  the  A  B  C's; 
and,  during  the  long  winter  nights,  they 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  203 

both  learned  to  read.  Rcgina  used  to  say, 
"  Oh,  if  she  could  only  converse  with  God, 
and  have  God  to  converse  with  her,  she 
would  be  so  happy!"  She  had  learned  in 
her  catechism  that  we  converse  wTith  God 
in  prayer,  and  that  he  converses  with  us  in 
his  word.  Hence  her  anxiety  to  read  his 
word. 

In  the  spring  of  1766  she  was  sent  to 
Tulpehocken  to  catechize;  and  on  "Whit- 
suntide she  was  confirmed  according  to  the 
usages  of  the  Lutheran  church.  The  pastor 
(Rev.  J.  ~N.  Kurtz)  was  very  faithful  in  the 
discharge  of  his  duty.  He  was  a  pious  and 
holy  man  of  the  Franckean  school.  He 
came  to  this  country  as  a  candidate  from 
Halle  in  1745,  and,  for  a  few  years,  was 
assistant  preacher  to  Dr.  H.  M.  Muhlen- 
berg. He  was  a  man  of  deep  Christian  ex- 
perience,— as  were  all  the  ministers  who 
were  educated  at  Halle.  These  men  came 
here  to  do  good,  to  huild  up  a  spiritual  tem- 
ple to  the  Lord.  Muhlenberg,  Handshuh, 
Heinzelman,  Krug,  Rouss,  J.  Nicholas 
Kurtz  and  William  Kurtz,  and  many  others, 
were  all  men  of  this   school.  Practical 


204 


LEG IX A  :  OR, 


piety  was  of  more  importance  to  them  than 
a  mere  dead  orthodoxy. 

In  order  to  give  the  reader  an  exact  idea 
of  the  state  of  things  in  the  Lutheran 
church  at  that  period,  we  must  here  oc- 
cupy a  few  pages  with  a  digression,  and 
show  them  how  matters  stood  at  that  time. 

The  Lutheran  church  dates  from  October 
30,  1517,  when  Luther  burnt  the  pope's 
bull  at  Wittenberg,  thus  manfully  setting 
his  power  at  defiance.  Luther,  in  the 
hands  of  God.  was  the  principal  instru- 
ment of  the  Reformation.  The  Reforma- 
tion grew  out  of  his  conversion  to  God. 
His  conversion  was  marked  and  decided, 
lie  had  to  drink  the  wormwood  and  the 
gall.  Deep  and  long  and  pungent  were 
the  agonies  of  his  awakened  soul.  You 
will  rind  a  full  and  extensive  account 
of  his  awakening  and  conversion  in 
the  book.  ••Luther,  by  a  Lutheran." — the 
fullest  you  can  rind  anywhere.  Read  it 
carefully. 

The  Reformation  grew  out  of  his  con- 
version. Of  this  there  can  be  no  doubt. 
For,  without  his  experimental  piety,  his 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  205 

learning,  his  talents,  and  his  almost  super- 
human eloquence,  could  never  have  accom- 
plished this  mighty  work.  We  must  net 
forget  that  Philip  Melancthon,  who  was 
also  a  truly  pious  man,  was  a  great  help  to 
Luther.  He  did  much,  by  his  learning  and 
piety,  in  promoting  the  Keformation.  As 
long  as  these  holy  men  lived,  our  church 
prospered.  Nothing  could  stand  before 
her.  This  may  be  called  the  golden  age 
of  our  church.  But,  as  soon  as  these  holy 
men  had  fallen  asleep  in  the  Lord,  a  differ- 
ent spirit  prevailed,  The  fathers  of  the  Lu- 
theran church,  as  soon  as  the  blessed  Re- 
formers were  dead,  got  into  the  unholy 
spirit  of  rancorous  controversy,  and,  having 
lost  the  spirit  of  experimental  piety,  instead 
of  manfully  battling  with  sin  and  popery  as 
their  fathers  had  done,  foolishly  turned  their 
acrimonious  weapons  against  each  other. 
In  those  long-continued  and  often  bitter 
and  unchristian  controversies,  the  conten- 
tion was  more  for  the  outward  form  of  god- 
liness than  for  its  inward  power.  Those 
learned  doctors  who  were  most  zealous  for 

18 


206 


regina;  or, 


uniformity  and  orthodoxy  were  generally 
the  least  pious.  This  has  always  been  the 
case,  and  is  true  in  our  own  age.  True 
piety  must  always  be  found  among  the 
ministers  of  the  Protestant  church,  or  she 
cannot  prosper.  The  church  of  Rome, 
and  all  Protestant  churches  which,  like  the 
church  of  Rome,  place  more  confidence  in 
forms  than  in  living  piety,  can  get  along 
without  piety  in  their  ministers.  The  peo- 
ple must  have  either  an  active,  living  piety, 
or  liturgies  and  ceremonies  and  forms.  So 
it  has  always  been,  so  it  is  now.  Human 
nature  is  the  same  in  all  ages  and  in  all 
countries.  The  spirit  of  controversy  grew 
hotter  and  hotter  until  it  reached  its  culmi- 
nating point,  about  1580.  During  this  tur- 
bulent age,  theological  education  was  neg- 
lected, and  personal  piety  was  scarcely 
thought  of.  Dr.  Spener  says, — "  The  stu- 
dents entered  the  university  without  any 
idea  of  what  theology  was,  regarding  it  as  a 
mere  matter  of  memory.  Prayer  and  per- 
sonal piety  were  considered  as  of  no  conse- 
quence, lie  who  became  an  experimental 
Christian,  or  who  dared  to  advocate  vital 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  207 

piety,  was  stigmatized  as  a  Pharisee  or  a 
Hosicrucian." 

Though  the  standard  of  piety  was  low,  yet 
the  Lord  always  had  his  faithful  servants  in 
our  church ;  he  never  forsook  her  alto- 
gether. In  the  darkest  hours  of  the 
church  the  Lord  always  raised  up  and 
qualified  men  of  commanding  talents  to 
fight  her  battles,  and  to  labor  and  pray  and 
suffer  for  her  welfare. 

And  this  fact  should  give  hope  and  en- 
couragement to  those  who  are  now  warring 
against  the  inroads  formalism  and  semi- 
popery  are  making  upon  the  Lutheran 
church  in  America.  Let  them  stand  fast; 
God  is  on  their  side.  The  Lutheran  church 
needed  a  second  Reformation,  not  from  the 
shackles  of  popery,  but  from  the  formalism 
and  error  that  had  usurped  the  place  of  true 
piety  in  her  own  bosom.  And  God  raised 
up  a  succession  of  holy  and  godly  ministers, 
who,  from  time  to  time,  carried  forward  this 
glorious  work.  And  so  he  will  continue  to 
do  until  his  church  shall  be  "  bright  as  the 
sun,  fair  as  the  moon,  and  terrible  as  an 
army  with  banners." 


203 


regixa;  or, 


The  first  of  those  Reformers  was  Stephen 
Pnetorius,  pastor  at  Saltzwedel,  a  man  of 
deep  piety,  who  preached  and  wrote  much 
in  favor  of  experimental  piety.  He  aimed 
at  a  revival  of  true  religion  in  the  Lutheran 
church.  This  good  man  was.  of  course, 
persecuted  and  basely  slandered  by  the 
orthodox  party;  but  he  was  firm  and  con- 
sisteut.  and  acquired  great  influence.  He 
was  the  friend  and  companion  of  John 
Arndt,  and  had  no  little  influence  upon  the 
mind  of  the  immortal  author  of  the  "  True 
Christianity/' 

John  Arndt  was  born  in  1555,  just  nine 
years  after  Luther's  death.  He  lost  his  fa- 
ther, who  was  one  of  the  Reformers,  in  1565; 
and,  like  Luther,  he  was  a  charity-scholar 
at  Magdeburg.  AVhat  we  mean  by  a  charity- 
scholar  in  those  days  was  this:  —  children 
whose  parents  were  not  able  to  support 
them  while  at  school,  were  obliged  to  go 
round  the  town,  from  house  to  house,  and 
sing  at  the  people's  doors.  The  kind  peo- 
ple would  then  give  them  a  piece  of  bread. 
This  is  the  way  many  great  men  received 
their  education.     John  Arndt  studied  at 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  209 


some  three  or  four  universities,  but  chiefly 
at  Strasburg.  He  was  awakened  and  truly 
converted  to  God  during  a  spell  of  sick- 
ness. He  was  a  great  preacher,  and  la- 
bored hard  to  promote  true  religion  in 
the  church.  Few  men  have  done  more  to 
promote  spiritual  religion  than  he.  But 
he  was  bitterly  persecuted,  and  very  rudely 
attacked  by  such  men  as  Osiander,  Co- 
rain,  Schelwig,  Rostius,  and  others  of  the 
high-church  party.  They  preached  against 
him ;  and  in  their  sermons — some  of  which 
are  still  extant  —  they  charged  him  with 
being  a  mystic,  an  enthusiast,  a  heretic, 
and  a  false  prophet.  He  was  a  burning 
and  a  shining  light  in  the  church ;  and, 
though  being  dead,  he  yet  speaketh,  in 
the  "  True  Christianity,"  a  book  as  exten- 
sively read  as  any  uninspired  book  in  the 
world,  and  a  book  that  will  be  read  and 
admired  amid  the  splendors  qf  the  millen- 
nial glory. 

John  Arndt  may  be  looked  upon  as  the 
second  great  reformer  in  the  Lutheran 
church,  and  as  standing  at  the  head  of  the 
evangelical    party,   and    opposed  to  the 

18* 


210 


regina;  or, 


other  party  that  has  always  "been  more 
concerned  about  forms  and  ceremonies 
than  true  piety. 

This  good  and  holy  man  was  the  founder 
of  the  school  of  Pietism  in  the  Lutheran 
church.  When  Arndt  died,  the  fire  that  he 
had  kindled  did  not  go  out.  God  raised 
up  other  holy  men,  who  carried  the  good 
work  forward. 

Dr.  Philip  J.  Spener,  the  successor  of 
Arndt,  was  born  in  1635,  and  was  one  of 
the  most  pious  and  eloquent  preachers 
that  ever  lived.  By  a  single  sermon  this 
devoted  and  powerful  preacher  produced 
the  most  intense  excitement  throughout 
the  whole  city  of  Frankfort.  He  was  the 
great  revival  preacher  of  his  age.  Many  sin- 
ners became  awakened  under  his  preaching, 
and,  like  revival  preachers  of  the  present 
day,  he  found  it  necessary  to  employ  other 
means  than  merely  standing  at  arm's-length 
from  the  sinner.  Hence,  he  instituted  his 
pious  conferences,  which  he  called  "  Colle- 
gia Pieiatis"  out  of  which  our  "  anxious- 

*  A  full  and  very  interesting  Life  of  Arndt,  by  Rev.  Dr. 
Morris,  of  Baltimore,  has  been  recently  published  (in  English) 
by  the  publisher  of  this  work. 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  211 


meetings"  have  very  naturally  grown. 
For  this  he  was  persecuted  and  branded 
as  a  heretic,  a  Quaker,  and  a  Pietist. 

Dr.  Spener  was  deeply  interested  for 
young  people.  He  was  much  in  favor  of 
catechizing,  but  was  opposed  to  the  abuse 
of  the  system  of  the  catechism.  And,  to 
correct  the  evils  often  connected  with  the 
catechism,  he  published  a  series  of  sermons 
on  the  Lutheran  Catechism. 

Spener  was  the  instrument,  in  the  hands 
of  God,  of  influencing  the  Elector  of  Bran- 
denburg to  found  the  University  of  Halle. 
This  was  in  1690.  The  founding  of  this 
university  forms  a  new  era  in  the  history 
of  true  piety. 

The  successor  of  Spener  wras  Hermann 
Augustus  Franke,  who  was  born  in  1663. 
In  1692,  Franke,  at  Spener's  request,  was 
appointed  professor  at  Halle.  The  results 
of  his  labors  there  are  well  known  through- 
out the  whole  Christian  world;  his  faith, 
his  prayers  and  labors  can  never  be  for- 
gotten. 

Franke  was  a  man  deeply  experienced  in 
religion.    When  he  commenced  preaching 


212 


regina;  or, 


he  was  not  converted.  He  gives  us  an  ac- 
count of  his  conversion,  which  is  quite 
interesting,  showing  us  that  converted 
people  then  felt  as  they  do  now. 

Franke,  like  thousands  of  his  contem- 
poraries, had  assumed  the  ministerial  office 
without  conversion ;  hut,  like  the  great 
Origen,  it  pleased  God  to  make  the  sermon 
he  had  intended  for  others,  the  instrument 
of  his  own  conversion.  Here  is  his  own 
account: — 

"While  I  was  preparing  a  sermon  on 
John  xx.  31,  *  That  believing  ye  might  have 
life  through  his  name,' — while  meditating 
on  these  words,  the  thought  occurred  to  me 
that  I  myself  had  no  faith  in  Christ.  It 
was  in  vain  I  endeavored  to  resist  the 
strong  conviction  that  fastened  on  my 
mind.  In  the  deepest  agony  of  mind  I 
knelt  down  and  prayed  that  God  would 
have  compassion  on  my  soul.  But  no  an- 
swer of  mercy  came.  In  this  agonized 
state  of  mind,  I  resolved  that  unless  a 
change  occurred  I  would  not  preach,  for  I 
could  not  think  of  preaching  against  my 
own  conscience.    I  felt  then  what  it  was  to 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  213 


have  no  God.  In  deep  distress  of  mind,  I 
knelt  down  again  and  called  upon  the  God 
and  Savior  whom  I  knew  not,  and  believed 
not  in,  for  deliverance  from  this  miserable 
condition.  The  Lord  heard  my  prayer  and 
answered  it  instantly.  All  my  doubts  were 
at  once  removed.  I  was  assured  in  my 
heart  of  the  grace  of  God  in  Christ;  all 
sorrow  at  once  departed,  and  I  was  inun- 
dated as  with  a  flood  of  joy!  I  now  felt  as 
if  through  my  whole  life  I  had  been  in  a 
profound  sleep  and  had  performed  all  my 
actions  in  a  dream." 

From  that  hour  Franke  dated  his  con- 
version. More  than  forty  years  afterward — 
in  the  garden  of  the  orphan-house  at  Halle, 
where  he  offered  his  last  prayer — he  ac- 
knowledged that  God  had  opened  a  foun- 
tain in  his  heart  at  the  hour  of  his  conver- 
sion, from  which  streams  of  joy  and  comfort 
had  flowed  ever  since.  This  man,  with  his 
renewed  heart,  accomplished,  single-handed 
and  alone,  what  no  other  human  being  did: 
— he  sent,  during  his  lifetime,  more  than 
Bix  thousand  ministers  into  the  church,  and 


KEG IX a:  or. 


some  of  them  to  the  ends  of  the  earth  as 
missionaries. 

Franke  seems  to  have  been  raised  up  by 
Providence  to  carry  forward  the  work  com- 
menced by  Arndt  and  Bpener. 

It  is  a  delightful  task  to  trace  the  mighty 
working  of  divine  grace  in  such  a  heart  as 
Franke* s  : — to  see  that  grace,  like  a  pent- 
up  fountain  in  the  mountain-side,  bursting 
its  embankments  and  scooping  out  new 
channels  of  benevolence!  AVith  a  moral 
heroism  truly  sublime,  he  plunged  into  un- 
known regions  of  benevolence,  and  ex- 
plored continents  of  charity  of  whose  ex- 
istence other  Christians  had  scarcely  ever 
dreamed. 

Franke.  in  compliance  with  the  wishes 
of  his  great  and  good  friend.  Bpener.  never 
lost  sight  of  the  great  object  for  which  he 
was  placed  at  Halle.  Hence  he  labored 
and  prayed  to  bring  the  Lutheran  church 
into  a  better  state.  The  American  Lu- 
theran church  (so  called  by  the  fathers  them- 
selves in  the  Synod  of  17So-  is  an  offshoot 
from  Halle.  Those  godly  men  who  planted 
the  Lutheran  church  in  America  were  near- 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  215 


ly  all  educated  at  Halle,  and  brought  the 
same  spirit  that  prevailed  there  over  to 
this  country:  —  Muhlenberg,  Ileinzelman, 
Handshuh,  Yoight,  Schmidt,  Kunze,  Nicho- 
las and  William  Kurtz,  Helmuth,  Schultze, 
Rouss,  and  others. 

These  were  all  pious,  practical,  and  ener- 
getic Christians, — men  who  had  themselves 
experienced  true  religion,  as  the  hymn- 
books  and  liturgies  they  prepared  for  our 
infant  church  in  this  country  fully  show. 
Their  liturgy  of  1785  has  more  holy  unc- 
tion than  any  once  since  prepared,  and 
their  hymn-book  has  more  of  the  spirit  of 
living  piety  than  those  of  a  later  date. 
And,  indeed,  all  their  writings  that  have 
come  down  to  us  show  that  they  were  pious 
and  holy  men.  There  was  little  of  the 
churchly  element  in  th^ir  theology.  In 
their  day  the  fountains  of  learning  in  Ger- 
many had  not  yet  been  poisoned  by  modern 
Rationalism.  Faith  in  Christ  was  of  more 
importance  to  them  than  creed  and  con- 
fessions. The  American  Lutheran  church 
has  been  true  to  the  principles  of  her 
fathers;  and,  if  it  were  not  for  a  foreign 


regixa  :  or, 


element  more  recently  imported  among  us, 
there  would  be  no  controversy  in  our 
church  at  present.  Here,  now.  after  the 
lapse  of  more  than  one  hundred  years,  the 
Lutheran  church  still  remains  the  freest 
and  the  purest  in  the  world.  The  noble 
school  at  Halle — the  great  bulwark  of  pure 
Lutheranism — was  swamped  in  the  union 
of  1817. 

It  was  one  of  those  wise  vet  mysterious 
movements  of  Providence,  that  the  good 
seed  of  evangelical  piety  sown  at  Halle 
should  be  transplanted  to  this  "Western 
world  while  experimental  piety  was  the 
reigning  element  there.  Here,  in  this  new 
world,  God  seems  to  have  housed  his 
church  from  the  storms  and  tempests  which 
swept  with  such  terrific  force  over  the 
fatherland.  Here  the  Lutheran  church 
was  to  commence  a  new  career.  Unlike 
the  church  in  Europe,  she  was  here  to  be 
free  and  unshackled,  as  she  had  been  in 
the  beginning.  Here  a  high  and  noble 
destiny  awaited  her. 

This  church  has  already,  under  many  dis- 
advantages, worked  out  mighty  results,  and 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  217 


she  is  destined  to  perform  yet  higher  and 
nobler  deeds.  God  is  in  our  midst ;  and,  if 
we  are  true  to  her  interests  and  cling  to  the 
cross,  the  light  from  the  altar-fires  of  our 
American  Lutheran  church  will  be  reflected 
back  to  the  land  of  her  birth  and  rekindle 
the  flames  of  a  living  piety  upon  the  frozen 
heart  of  her  lifeless  formalism. 

Disguise  it  as  we  will,  the  Lutheran  church 
in  Germany  has  been  untrue  to  her  mis- 
sion. She  has  mistaken  the  dim  rushlight 
of  human  reason  for  the  glorious  gospel  of 
Jesus  Christ.  She  has  wickedly  set  aside 
God's  holy  Sabbaths,  and  set  her  face 
against  God's  revivals,  and  thrust  aside 
God's  Bible.  Confessional  religion  she  has 
enough  of — she  has  creeds  and  confes- 
sions enough — she  has  orthodoxy  enough  ; 
but  her  living  piety  is  too  small  —  too 
feeble. 

After  these  remarks — which  do  not 
properly  belong  to  our  narrative  of  Re- 
gina's  life  —  the  reader  will  be  prepared 
for  what  follows  in  the  experience  of 
Regina. 

While  attending  a  course  of  lectures  un- 

19 


218 


regina;  or, 


der  the  Rev.  J.  N.  Kurtz,  she  and  nearly 
all  the  young  people. who  attended  with 
her  became  deeply  interested  In  the  salva- 
tion of  their  souls.  The  pastor  was  true  to 
his  charge,  and,  by  prayer  and  exhortation, 
he  continued  to  pour  the  light  and  truth  of 
the  gospel  into  their  minds.  He  found  this 
an  excellent  opportunity  for  doing  good. 
He  addressed  the  children  personally  and 
directly. 

One  day,  just  before  confirmation,  Re- 
gina came  home  much  depressed  in  mind, 
— so  much  so  that  the  fond  eye  of  her  mo- 
ther noticed  that  something  was  wrong 
with  her. 

"What  is  the  matter,  my  child?"  said 
the  mother. 

"Oh!"  said  Regina,  unable  to  suppress 
the  rising  emotion  of  her  troubled  heart, 
"I  do  not  know;  but  I  feel  so  bad.  I 
have  been  such  a  great  sinner.  And  the 
minister  to-day  explained  from  the  Cate- 
chism the  nature  of  conversion ;  and, 
among  other  things,  he  said  we  must  all 
be  converted  or  be  lost.     Then  we  all 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  219 


sang  that  beautiful  hymn  out  of  the  Cate- 
chism,— 

"  '  Steh  arme8  kind  wo  eilst  du  hin, 
Erkenne  dein  verderben.' " 

Here  she  hurst  out  in  an  uncontrollable  fit 
of  weeping.  Her  heart  was  almost  broken, 
and  she  could  say  no  more. 

Her  mother,  who  had  once  been  an 
awakened  sinner,  knew  at  once  what  was 
the  matter.  The  Spirit  of  God  had  touched 
her  heart,  and  the  waters  of  repentance 
were  flowing  from  her  eyes.  The  pious 
mother  thanked  God,  and  directed  her  as 
well  as  she  could  to  the  Savior.  Kegina 
prayed  much  that  night  and  the  few  days 
that  intervened  before  her  confirmation ; 
but  she  found  no  peace. 

On  Saturday,  early  in  the  morning,  she 
and  her  mother  started  before  day  to  travel 
about  twenty  miles ;  for  they  had  to  go  that 
distance  to  church.  Regina  was  deeply  dis- 
tressed when  they  came  to  the  good  old 
pastor.'s  house.  He  lived  near  the  place 
where  the  Tulpehocken  church  stands;  it 
was  then  a  log  church.     The  pastor  re- 


220 


regina;  or, 


ceived  them  very  kindly,  and  soon  inquired 
into  Regina's  spiritual  state,  and  found  her 
to  be  deeply  penitent.  He  was,  of  course, 
glad  to  see  this,  and  talked  very  affection- 
ately with  her,  and  directed  her  to  the 
Lamb  of  God,  who  beareth  the  sins  of  the 
world.  He  told  her  she  must  give  her 
heart  to  the  Lord  Jesus. 

The  other  children  now  all  gathered  at 
the  house  of  the  sexton,  who  lived  in  the 
woods;  and  there  the  girls  all  put  on  their 
pretty  white  caps,  and,  being  all  dressed  in 
white,  made  a  fine  appearance.  This  used 
to  be  the  custom  in  our  church ;  it  was  a 
useless,  though  an  innocent,  custom.  It 
was,  perhaps,  originally  intended  to  typify 
the  innocence  of  the  catechumens,  and  was 
handed  down,  some  suppose,  from  the  days 
of  the  apostles. 

Webster  says, — "  Whitsuntide — the  feast 
of  Pentecost — is  derived  from  white,  Sun- 
day, and  tide,  and  is  so  called  because,  in 
the  primitive  church,  those  who  were 
newly  baptized,  or  the  catechumens,  ap- 
peared at  church  in  white  garments." 
The  word  tide  means  a  season. 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  221 

Well,  the  girls — some  eighteen  or  twenty 
in  number — put  on  their  nice  white  caps, 
and  assembled  in  the  school-house,  where 
the  pastor  met  them,  and,  after  singing 
and  prayer,  they  were  examined  before  the 
church  council.  They  were  all  deeply 
affected.  From  the  school-house  they 
marched  in  procession  to  the  church,  where 
a  large  congregation  was  assembled.  The 
pastor  then  preached  an  excellent  sermon 
from  Isaiah  lxi.  8: — "And  I  will  make  an 
everlasting  covenant  with  them."  He 
preached  faithfully  and  powerfully,  and 
deep  were  the  impressions  made  upon  the 
hearts  of  all.  The  young  people  were  so 
much  excited  that  you  could  hear  them 
weeping  and  sobbing  all  over  the  house; 
and  many  a  sturdy  sinner,  who  was  re- 
minded of  bygone  days,  was  affected  to 
tears. 

The  children  were  then  called  to  the 
altar,  where  they  took  upon  themselves  the 
vows  their  parents  had  made  for  them  in 
baptism.  They  then  knelt  down,  and  the 
man  of  God  laid  his  hands  on  them  and 
offered  up  a  short  prayer.  This  is  confirma- 
19* 


222 


regina;  or, 


tion.  But  he  took  care  to  exhort  them  to 
give  themselves  away  to  the  Lord  in  an 
everlasting  covenant.  Eegina  did  this,  and 
found  peace  in  believing  in  Christ  her 
Savior.  She  felt  that  the  burden  of  sin 
was  removed  and  she  had  found  her 
Savior.  Oh,  how  happy  she  was!  Jesus 
was  now  precious  to  her  heart;  and  she 
could  now  sing  that  beautiful  German 
hymn,— 

"Ich  habe  nun  den  Grund  gefunden." 

This  is  one  of  the  most  spiritual  hymns 
in  any  language ;  and  we  will  here  furnish 
you  with  Mr.  Mills's  translation  of  it  into 
English.    It  was  composed  by  Rothe. 

"  I  now  have  found,  for  hope  of  heav'n, 
An  anchor-ground  that  firm  will  hold; 
One — through  the  cross  of  Jesus  giv'n, 

By  God  predestin'd  from  of  old; 
A  ground  that  shall  enduring  stay 
When  earth  and  skies  have  pass'd  away. 

<(  'Tis  mercy, — mercy  never-ending, 

Whose  measure  all  our  thoughts  excels; 
The  arms  of  pity  wide-extending, 

Of  Him  whose  heart  for  sinners  feels, 
And  whose  compassion  warns  his  foes 
To  fly  from  sin  and  endless  woes. 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  223 

"  Of  all  beside  were  I  forsak'n 

That  could  my  soul  or  body  cheer ; 
If  ev'ry  joy  of  earth  were  tak'n, 

And  not  a  friend  were  left  me  here, — 
One  joy  remains — the  brightest,  best, — ■ 
With  pard'ning  love  I  still  am  blest. 

u  Upon  this  ground  I  will  sustain  me 
As  long  as  earth  my  dwelling  prove; 

To  serve  my  God  and  Savior  train  me, 
Till,  dying,  I  shall  rise  above ; — 

And  there,  rejoicing,  will  adore 

Unbounded  mercy  evermore!" 

This  does  not  give  the  full  unction  of  the 
original ;  but  it  is  the  best  we  have. 

Kegina  and  her  mother  did  not  go  home 
that  day.  One  of  the  elders  of  the  church 
invited  them  to  his  house,  where  they  re- 
mained, for  the  purpose  of  attending  the 
communion  on  the  following  Sabbath. 
They  had  a  refreshing  time  of  it.  God 
was  in  their  midst;  and  they  went  on  their 
way  rejoicing. 

On  their  way  home  Regina  told  her  mo- 
ther what  the  Lord  had  done  for  her  soul. 
They  were  both  happy:  the  mother  rejoiced 
in  the  conversion  of  her  daughter,  and  the 
daughter  rejoiced  in  her  new  spiritual  life. 


224 


regina;  or, 


Oh,  now  pleasantly  their  days  and  hours 
moved  along ! 

Regina  applied  her  mind  to  improvement 
and  made  rapid  progress.  She  often  looked 
back  upon  her  past  life,  and  thanked  God 
for  having  led  her  by  a  way  that  she  knew 
not.  The  Lord  had  meant  it  all  for  her 
,  good.  She  was  now,  after  all  her  suffer- 
ings and  toils,  brought  to  a  knowledge  of 
God.  Her  father  was  dead,  George  and 
Barbara  were  no  more;  but  her  Savior 
lived. 

That  summer  Regina  and  her  mother 
made  a  visit  to  Philadelphia,  where  they 
had  an  interview  with  Dr.  Henry  M.  Muh- 
lenberg,—  from  whom  Regina  received  a 
Bible  and  hymn-book,  which  she  kept  till 
the  day  of  her  death.  It  was  during  this 
visit  that  Dr.  Muhlenberg  received  from 
Regina's  own  lips  the  account  which  he 
has  given  us  of  her  thrilling  history,  and 
of  which  this  is  an  enlargement. 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  225 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

THE  WIDOW'S  HOME  MADE  HAPPY. 

CHRISTIAN   AND  SUSAN  — THEIR  CONVERSION— CONNECTION 
"WITH  THE  CHURCH—COURTSHIP  AND  MARRIAGE. 

After  Regina's  conversion  she  became 
very  active  in  discharging  all  her  known 
duties.  Prayer  was  her  pleasure  and  de- 
light. She  often  retired  to  converse  in 
secret  with  her  Savior.  She  knew  that 
Christians  must  be  "the  salt  of  the  earth" 
and  "the  light  of  the  world,"  and  that  they 
were  not  to  "  hide  their  light  under  a 
bushel."  Her  sphere  of  usefulness,  it  is 
true,  wTas  limited.  There  were  few  neigh- 
bors, and  but  few  strangers  ever  came  to 
that  obscure  and  remote  corner  where  she 
lived  ;  but  there  was  Christian,  her  brother, 
now  fast  approaching  manhood,  and  Susan, 
who  was  bound  to  her  heart  by  a  thousand 


226 


regina;  or, 


ties.  Though  both  well  trained  in  their 
moral  feelings,  yet  they  lacked  the  one  thing 
needful;  for  Regina  never  was  taught  by 
her  Bible  or  her  pastor  that  baptism  was 
regeneration.  She,  therefore,  frequently 
talked  with  them  about  their  souls'  salva- 
tion. They  soon  saw  what  they  were  by 
nature.  And  it  was  agreed  that  Regina 
should  teach  Christian  and  Susan  the  cate- 
chism; and  that  next  Easter  they  should 
also  attend  a  course  of  lectures  at  the  Tul- 
pehocken  church, —  which  they  did,  and 
both  were  brought  to  a  saving  knowledge 
of  the  truth. 

Time  passed  on;  we  have  not  space  to 
record  all  the  many  incidents  that  occur- 
red in  the  Hartman  family.  Suffice  it  to 
say,  that  the  widow's  heart  was  made  glad 
by  the  piety  and  obedience  of  her  children. 
Her  husband  and  George  and  Barbara  were 
in  heaven,  as  she  really  believed,  and  her- 
self and  Regina  and  Christian  were  on  the 
way  to  that  happy,  happy  home. 

Several  years  rolled  by  without  pro- 
ducing any  more  than  the  ordinary 
changes.     Christian    was    now    a  man. 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  227 


Tie  was  past  twenty-one  years  old ;  and 
Susan,  as  near  as  they  could  come  at 
her  age,  was  about  nineteen.  She  was  not 
tall,  but  thickly-set  and  closely-knit,  with 
dark  raven  hair  and  piercing  black 
eyes.  She  had,  by  carefully  protecting 
her  face  from  the  sun,  lost  much  of  her 
Indian  color.  She  was  cheerful  and  lively, 
and  very  even-tempered,  and  rather  shy. 
It  was  not  much  to  be  wondered  at  that 
Christian  should  form  an  attachment  for 
her.  They  were  often  together,  and,  before 
they  knew  it,  they  loved  each  other.  It  is 
true  they  tried  to  hide  it  from  Regina  and 
her  mother;  but  Mrs.  Hartman  had  pene- 
tration enough  to  see  it.  They  had  no  oc- 
casion to  be  ashamed  of  loving  each  other. 
There  was  no  impropriety  in  doing  what 
all  have  done  from  the  beginning  and  will 
do  to  the  end  of  time.  Men  and  women 
were  made  to  love  each  other.  But,  some- 
how or  other,  these  modest  and  pious  young 
people  thought  nobody  ought  to  know  that 
they  loved  each  other ! 

One  day,  Mrs.  Hartman  said  to  Regina, 
when  they  were  alone, — ■ 


228 


regina;  or, 


"Well,  I  suppose  Christian  and  Susan 
love  each  other,  and  they  had  better  get 
married.  Susan  is  a  fine  girl,  and  I  love 
her;  and,  when  I  am  dead  and  gone,  Chris- 
tian will  take  care  of  her." 

"Yes,"  replied  Regina,  "I  think  so 
too." 

"  Suppose  we  speak  to  them  about  it." 
"Very  well." 

So  it  was  agreed  that  Mrs.  Hartman 
would  talk  with  Christian,  and  Regina  with 
Susan.  I  need  not  tell  you  how  Christian 
and  Susan  both  blushed  out  the  full  con- 
firmation of  the  conjectures  of  Regina  and 
her  mother,  and  how  readily  they  con- 
sented to  the  arrangements  thus  proposed. 
Christian  and  Susan  loved  each  other  with 
a  pure  and  holy  love.  Their  hearts  had 
long  since  been  melted  into  one  heart. 

This  proposal  was  made  in  the  summer; 
and  it  was  suggested  by  the  mother  that 
the  wedding  should  come  off  in  the  fall,  as 
soon  as  the  seeding  was  over.  I  need  not 
tell  you  how  pleasantly  they  spent  the 
interval.  Nor  need  I  inform  you  how, 
when  Mrs.  Hartman  told  Susan  to  blow 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  229 

the  dinner-horn  for  Christian,  she  could 
not  find  it,  and  would  prefer  running  out 
to  the  field  and  calling  him !  Eor  how 
Christian  would  do  every  thing  he  could 
to  lighten  Susan's  labors :  how  he  would 
chop  the  wood  very  fine  and  carry  it 
into  the  kitchen,  and  how  he  would  go  to 
the  spring  for  water,  and  how  he  would 
stand  by  when  she  was  milking  in  the 
evening  and  carry  the  milk-pail  to  the 
spring-house.  These  things  were  all  natu- 
ral. Their  love  seemed  to  increase  from 
day  to  day. 

At  length  the  time  approached  that  they 
were  to  be  married.  They  went  over  the 
mountains,  and  were  married  at  the  old 
stone  parsonage.  There  was  no  great 
parade  made  at  their  nuptials.  To-be- 
sure,  when  they  came  home  next  day,  some 
of  the  neighbors  had  gathered  to  con- 
gratulate them,  and  to  eat  a  roasted  turkey 
and  other  good  things. 

Christian  now  took  charge  of  the  farm, 
and  Regina  and  her  mother  had  their 
home  with  him.  Susan  was  now  in  reality 
the  mistress  of  the  house;  but  she  re- 
20 


230 


REG  IN  A  ;  OR, 


mained  the  same  humble  and  affectionate 
child.  She  assumed  no  authority;  took  no 
airs  upon  herself;  worked  just  as  she  had 
all  along  been  doing.  And  Christian,  too, 
was  the  same.  There  was  no  contract 
made  between  him  and  his  mother.  When 
he  sold  a  cow,  or  grain,  or  any  thing  else, 
the  money  was  put  in  his  mother's  chest, 
where  all  had  access  to  it.  A  neighbor 
once  suggested  that,  as  Christian  was  now 
of  age  and  married,  it  would  be  right  and 
proper  for  him  to  purchase  the  farm;  but 
neither  he  nor  his  mother  could  see  the 
necessity  of  such  a  measure.  They  could 
all  live  together  in  peace ;  and,  as  Christian 
used  to  say,  "As  long  as  I  have  bread  you 
will  all  have  it."  Begina,  too,  had  confi- 
dence in  her  brother,  and  knew  he  would 
do  right.  So,  then,  the  property'  remained 
as  it  had  been  since  the  death  of  Mr, 
Hartman,  except  that  Christian — by  the  ad- 
vice of  a  lawyer  in  Heading — had  the  land 
patented. 

Years  rolled  pleasantly  along,  and  chil- 
dren were  born  in  the  Hartman  family, 
both  boys  and  girls.    The  oldest  was  a  girl, 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  231 

and  was  called  Regina,  who  was  her  god- 
moiner;  and  the  next  was  a  little  black- 
headed  boy,  who  was  called  John,  after  his 
grandfather.  I  need  not  tell  you  how 
deeply  Regina  and  her  mother  were  in- 
terested in  those  children.  They  were  all 
so  kind  and  attentive  to  the  children  that 
the  poor  little  things  scarcely  knew  which 
was  their  right  mother.  Little  Regina 
used  to  call  Susan  her  little  mother,  Mrs. 
Hartman  her  old  mother,  and  Regina  her 
big  mother  !  These  children  were  the  light 
and  joy  of  the  house;  yes,  the  sunshine  of 
heaven  seems  to  come  down  through  little 
children  in  the  habitations  of  men.  They 
seem  to  be  flowers  of  paradise,  plucked  by 
angels'  hands,  and  planted  on  earth  to 
make  us  happy. 

Regina  commenced  teaching  them  as 
soon  as  they  could  be  taught,  and  they  be- 
came good  and  obedient  children.  God 
dwelt  in  this  pious  family. 

Age  began  to  make  his  mark  on  Mrs. 
Hartman.  She  was  now  past  threescore 
years,  and  her  vigorous  constitution  com- 
menced giving  way  to  the  weight  of  years 


232 


KEG IN A  ;  OR, 


and  hardships  through  which  she  had 
passed. 

Regina,  too,  was  now  pretty  well  up  in 
thirty,  and  had  given  up  all  idea  of  ever 
marrying.  She  often  told  her  mother  she 
would  never  get  married,  but  would  stay 
with  her  and  take  care  of  her  in  her  old 
days.  Nothing  could  induce  her  to  change 
her  mind  in  this  respect.  She  had  a  plea- 
sant and  a  happy  home,  and  her  heart  was 
so  much  occupied  in  religious  matters,  and 
with  Susan's  children  and  her  aged  mother, 
that  she  thought  of  little  else.  Never  was 
there  a  more  dutiful  daughter,  as  the  sequel 
will  fully  show. 

Regina  and  her  mother  often  went  to 
church;  and,  as  Mrs.  Hartman  was  he- 
coming  feeble,  she  rode,  and  Regina 
walked.  And  often  they  would  remain 
over  night  with  some  of  the  church  mem- 
bers in  the  neighborhood  of  the  church, 
and  sometimes  with  the  pastor — the  Rev. 
Emanuel  Schultz,  who  was  then  the  Lu- 
theran preacher  at  Tulpehocken.  He  also 
was  a  good  and  holy  man.  He  died  in 
1812,  I  think;  and  the  Rev.  Dr.  Lochman 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  233 

(then  of  Lebanon)  preached  his  funeral 
sermon. 

Christian  prospered  in  worldly  matters 
and  lived  a  cheerful  and  happy  life.  He 
had  been  a  good  boy,  and  he  became  a 
good  man,  as  is  generally  the  case.  Good 
boys  and  good  girls  make  good  men  and 
good  women,  for  the  same  reason  that 
good  seed  will  always  produce  good  fruit. 
Youth  is  the  time  to  lay  the  foundation  to 
be  good  in  mature  years.  Permit  me  here 
to  offer  a  few  reasons  why  you  should  be- 
come pious  in  your  youth. 

In  your  youth  your  hearts  are  more  open 
to  conviction.  You  are  not  hardened  in 
sin.  Nearly  all  the  heathen  that  become 
converted  by  the  labors  of  the  missionaries 
are  awakened  in  their  youth  and  in  the 
Sabbath-schools.  Sin  is  like  a  fearful  dis- 
ease :  the  longer  it  is  permitted  to  run  the 
worse  it  is. 

We  send  children — not  old  people — to 
school,  because  youth  is  the  time  to  learn. 
Few  ever  learn  to  read  who  do  not  learn  it 
before  they  are  twenty  years  old.  When 
20* 


204 


REG IX A  J  OR, 


men  and  women  get  old  they  generally 
practise  what  they  learned  in  their  youth. 

Most  persons  that  are  pious  became  so  in 
their  youth ;  and  the  great  majority  of 
those  who  neglect  religion  in  their  youth 
go  to  the  grave  and  to  the  bar  of  God  in 
an  impenitent  state.  ^Vhat  an  awful 
thought]  How  this  should  alarm  the 
young  who  neglect  their  souls ! 

Youth  is  the  spring-time  of  life;  and  the 
improvement  of  this  precious  season  will 
determine  the  glory  of  summer,  the  abun- 
dance of  autumn,  and  the  supply  for  the 
cold  and  chilling  winter.  Youth  is  the 
morning  of  life;  and  if  the  sun  does  not 
rise  before  noon  it  rarely  ever  rises  at  all. 

'•Remember,  then,  your  Creator  in  the 
days  of  your  youth,  before  the  evil  days 
come,*' — as  come  they  surely  will, —  and 
without  piety  you  will  have  no  pleasure  in 
them. 

Look  at  the  case  of  Regina.  With  not 
half  the  advantages  and  light  which  you 
possess,  she  was  firm  and  steadfast  even 
among  the  savage  Indians,  where  the  very 
name  of  God  was  not  known,  and  where 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  235 

every  temptation  was  thrown  in  her  way, 
and  where  she  had  none  to  take  her  by  the 
hand  and  encourage  her;  yet  she  continued 
to  follow  the  little  light  she  had: — she  said 
her  prayers  under  the  trees,  and  at  last  she 
was  brought  to  the  Savior  and  made  happy 
in  him. 

Recollect,  she  had  no  pious  Sabbath- 
school  teacher,  as  you  have;  and  no  good 
little  books,  such  as  you  have.  The  chil- 
dren of  our  Sabbath-schools  have  great  rea- 
son to  thank  G-od  for  all  the  blessings  they 
enjoy;  and  they  ought  to  make  good  use 
of  their  time,  and  not  let  their  great  advan- 
tages sink  them  deeper  into  ruin  in  the 
world  of  hopeless  sorrow  and  despair. 


23G 


regina;  or, 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

REGINA  AND  HER  MOTHER. 

PIETY     OF    MBS.    HARTMAN  HER     SICKNESS  — REGINA's 

CEASELESS  ATTENTION  TO  HER  AFFLICTED  MOTHER — HER 
HAPPINESS  IN  PROSPECT  OF  HEAVEN  HER  HAPPY  DEATH. 

Regina  was  happy  and  contented  with 
ner  lot.  God  was  always  in  her  thoughts ; 
and,  as  she  had  been  fortunate  enough  to 
procure  a  copy  of  Arndt's  "True  Chris- 
tianity" and  "Paradise  Garden,"  she  had 
something  to  occupy  her  time.  Some- 
times, too,  she  would  make  little  In- 
dian baskets,  and  other  things  she  had 
learned  among  the  Indians,  for  the  chil- 
dren. She  made  rapid  progress  in  the 
divine  life,  although  she  often  deplored 
her  proneness  to  sin  and  her  apathy  to- 
ward heavenly  things.  Yet  she  loved  her 
Savior  with  a  sincere  heart  and  pure  affec- 
tion. He  was  her  all.  She  had  learned  to 
know  him  by  a  happy  experience,  and  he 
was  "  the  fairest  among  ten  thousand"  to 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  237 


her.  Arndt's  "  True  Christianity"  was  a 
great  help  to  her.  She  had  formed  her  reli- 
gious views  from  the  Bihle  and  Arndt,  and 
had,  of  course,  a  good  system.  This  is  one 
of  the  best  systems  of  biblical  and  practical 
theology  in  the  world ;  and  any  person  who 
reads  it  must  become  pious  and  holy.  Re- 
gina  was  much  in  the  habit  of  reading  this 
excellent  book;  and,  as  her  mother's  eye- 
sight had  failed,  she  read  aloud  every  day, 
so  that  all  could  hear  it,  both  from  the  Bible 
and  Arndt's  book.  Regina  was  particularly 
fond  of  the  twentieth  chapter  of  the  first 
book  of  the  "  True  Christianity,"  which 
she  had  read  over  so  often  that  she  knew 
it  by  heart.  And,  as  it  did  her  so  much 
good,  perhaps  it  may  be  of  some  service  to 
the  reader;  we  will,  therefore,  furnish  a 
translation  of  this  beautiful  chapter.  It  is 
based  upon  a  passage  in  Heb.  xiii.  14 : — 
"  For  here  we  have  no  continuing  city,  but 
we  seek  one  to  come." 

"All  the  temporal  blessings  which  God 
has  provided  for  us  are  given  for  the  sup- 
port of  our  earthly  existence.  They  should 
only  be   applied  for  this  purpose.  We 


238 


regina;  or, 


should  receive  every  thing  from  God  with 
contentment  and  gratitude.  We  should  al- 
ways endeavor  to  use  all  the  gifts  of  God 
with  a  view  of  promoting  the  objects  for 
which  they  are  given.  If  a  man  abounds 
in  wealth,  it  is  given  him  as  a  trial,  to  see 
how  he  would  employ  it,  —  whether  he 
wrould  remain  submissive  to  God,  love 
and  esteem  him  above  all  things,  or  wheth- 
er he  would  withdraw  his  heart  from 
God,  yield  to  the  world  and  its  lusts,  and 
thus  barter  his  eternal  salvation  for  the 
transitory  things  of  this  life !  God,  who, 
consistently  with  his  wisdom  and  holiness, 
never  compels  man  to  do  good, — for  that 
only  is  true  godliness  and  virtue  which  is 
performed  with  delight  and  a  willing  mind, 
— has,  on  this  account,  left  it  optional  with 
man  what  course  to  take;  while,  through 
the  medium  of  riches,  talents,  and  honors, 
he  proves  him,  to  see  how  he  would  be 
disposed  toward  God: — whether  he  would 
thereby  suffer  himself  to  be  separated  from 
God,  or  remain  faithful  to  him.  So  then 
he  can  be  judged  according  to  his  own 
choice, — according  to  Moses :  Deut.  xxx.  19. 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  239 

"Dear  Christian,  ever  bear  in  mind  that 
the  objects  of  this  world  are  not  designed 
to  be  your  chief  good,  but  that  God  has 
conferred  them  upon  you  that  you  should 
enjoy  them  in  a  proper  way.  You  are 
placed  over  them  as  a  steward,  in  order  to 
show  that  you  have  been  faithful  in  small 
things,  so  that  ultimately  God  may  place 
you  over  greater  things  in  heaven.  Many, 
alas !  neglect  this.  They  seek  their  great- 
est pleasure  and  gratification  in  sensual 
indulgence: — in  eating  and  drinking,  in 
costly  attire,  in  splendor  and  glory,  in  an 
effeminate  manner  of  living,  and  in  other 
earthly  enjoyments.  By  these  things  they 
neglect  God  and  lose  heaven,  to  prepare  for 
whose  enjoyment  they  were  created  and 
placed  in  this  world.  Guard  against  such 
a  delusion.  Keep  constantly  before  your 
eyes  the  grand  object  of  your  creation. 
Let  this  sentiment  ever  be  impressed  upon 
your  mind : — 6  We  are  but  sojourners  and  pil- 
grims and  candidates  for  heaven ;  hence,  we 
will  act  accordingly.  We  will  use  tem- 
poral things  for  our  support,  to  supply  our 
wants  and  properly  to  sustain  our  bodies; 


240 


regina;  or, 


and  the  pleasant  things  which  may  fall  to 
our  lot  in  this  pilgrim- world — the  posses- 
sion of  which  is  uncertain,  as  their  enjoy- 
ment is  transient — shall  not  so  much  en- 
gage our  attention  as  to  cause  us  to  lose  our 
better  inheritance  in  heaven,  which  is  to  en- 
dure forever.  We  will  enjoy  them  with  a 
constant  remembrance  of  God,  endeavoring 
always  to  preserve  a  pure  and  holy  heart, 
and  never  so  ardently  seek,  wish  for,  or  use 
the  world  as  though  we  regarded  it  as  our 
chief  good ;  but  heaven  shall  remain  our 
greatest  delight  and  treasure,  and  nothing 
in  this  world  shall  give  us  so  much  jo}^  and 
be  so  highly  esteemed.'  Endeavor  always 
to  cherish  such  a  frame  of  mind,  for  this  is 
the  evidence  of  being  a  true  Christian. 

"  While  we  are  pilgrims  and  strangers  on 
earth,  why  should  men,  for  the  sake  of 
earthly  things  which  all  perish  in  their  using, 
expose  themselves  to  the  wrath  of  God? 

"  For  what  would  it  profit  a  man,  though  ho 
enjoyed  the  greatest  pleasures  and  the  most 
abundant  riches  and  were  held  in  the  highest 
esteem,  if  he  had  no  hope  of  heaven  ? 

"  He  wTho  would  be  better  advised,  and 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  241 

lay  up  treasures  in  heaven  which  time  can- 
not destroy  nor  death  take  from  him,  should 
always  remember  that  there  is  auother  and 
a  better  world,  and  he  should  lay  up  trea- 
sures there.  He  who  does  not  do  this  lives 
in  folly  and  blindness.  He  lives  like  an 
irrational  creature,  and,  as  such,  he  will 
perish  forever.  Ps.  xlix.  20. 

"  Such  a  one  might  rejoice  in  God  his 
Savior.  He  might  be  sustained  by  the 
blessed  comforts  of  religion  and  attain  to 
the  unspeakable  happiness  of  heaven ;  yea, 
he  might  participate  in  those  blessed  luxu- 
ries of  true  godliness,  which  are  far  supe- 
rior to  all  the  joys  of  the  mere  worldling; 
but  he  rejoices  in  sin  and  worldliness  and 
seeks  only  its  transitory  joys!  "This  is  a 
low  and  degraded  state  of  mind.  He  was 
indeed  created  for  a  blessed  immortality, 
but,  like  a  beast,  he  desires  to  live  at  ease 
only  to  the  hour  of  his  death.  Such  are 
poor,  deluded,  miserable  men,  that  sit,  as 
the  prophet  truly  says,  '  in  the  valley  and 
shadow  of  death.' 

"It  should  occasion  the  Christian  no  re- 
gret that  he  is  a  stranger  and  a  pilgrim  in 
21 


kbgixa:  or. 


this  fleeting  world;  but  this  tact  should 
teach  him  that  he  was  created  for  a  higher 
and  a  nobler  state  of  existence  beyond  the 
grave.  Hence,  true  Christians  do  not  look 
a:  this  world  as  their  home,  but  they  look 
forward  to  one  far  more  glorious  and 
blessed,  for  which  they  would  give  two 
worlds  like  the  present;  yea,  they  would 
offer  up  their  lives  and  all  they  had  for  the 
sake  of  that  better  world ! 

"The  true  Christian  inwardly  rejoices. 
He  daily  blesses  God  for  the  hope  of  hea- 
ven, and  is  deeply  concerned  that  he  may 
become  rich  in  good  works,  and  thus  be- 
come more  and  better  prepared  for  the  en- 
joyment of  that  inheritance  tor  which  God 
created  and  Jesus  Christ  redeemed  him." 

This  was  the  teaching  that  made  Regina 
strong  in  the  Lord.  She  looked  upon  this 
world  only  as  a  means  of  attaining  a  higher 
and  more  blessed  state  of  being. 

In  :he  of  the  vv;>:.  Mrs.  Hartinan 
was  taken  ill.  Her  sickness  was  severe 
from  the  beginning;  and  being  old,  and 
having  endured  many  hardships,  she  her- 
self said  it  would  be  unto  death.  She 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  243 

helped  herself  as  long  as  she  could ;  hut 
at  length  her  strength  failed  her,  and  Re- 
gina  watched  over  her  with  the  tendcrest 
care.  She  prayed  with  her,  and  sang  those 
cheering  German  hymns  that  have  smoothed 
the  passage  to  the  grave  for  millions. 

Mrs.  Hartman  had  very  clear  and  en- 
larged views  of  Christ  and  his  work  of  re- 
demption. She  had  served  him  from  her 
youth,  and,  as  she  used  to  say,  "lie  will 
not  now  forsake  me  in  mine  old  age." 
She  spent  much  of  her  time  in  prayer;  and 
Regina  had  to  read  to  her  those  cheering 
and  refreshing  prayers  in  Starcke's  Prayer- 
Book,  prepared  for  the  dying.  Oh,  how 
happy  true  religion  can  make  Christians  in 
a  dying  hour ! 

How  true  it  is  that 

"  Jesus  can  make  a  dying  bed 

Feel  soft  as  downy  pillows  are; 
While  on  his  heart  I  lean  my  head 

And  breathe  my  soul  out  sweetly  there !" 

All  this  Mrs.  Hartman  and  every  other 
child  of  God  experienced.  Regina  had 
many  an  excellent  conversation  with  her 
mother  about  the  things  of  God ;  and  the 


244 


regina;  or, 


heroic  conduct  of  her  mother  strengthened 
her  own  soul,  and  often  made  her  wish  that 
her  time  to  die  would  also  soon  come. 

This  fall  Mrs.  Hartman  could  not  at- 
tend communion  at  the  church.  And  yet 
she  had  a  sincere  desire  once  more  to  eat 
and  drink  "  the  body  and  blood"  of  her 
Savior.  She,  therefore,  requested  Chris- 
tian to  go  across  the  mountains  and  bring 
the  Rev.  Emanuel  Schultz  (then  pastor  of 
the  Lutheran  church  at  Tulpehocken)  over. 
Mr.  Schultz  came;  and  Regina  joined  her 
mother  in  the  communion.  Mr.  Schultz 
had  a  great  deal  of  conversation  with  Mrs. 
Hartman  and  Regina,  and  was  amazed  at 
the  clear  and  intelligent  views  they  had  of 
religion.  He  used  to  say,  "  that  among  the 
mountains,  in  small  cabins,  he  believed 
there  was  more  true  piety  than  in  the 
splendid  mansions  of  the  wealthy." 

He  used  to  say  of  this  visit,  that  "  he 
was  as  much  benefited  as  the  poor  dying 
wTidow.  It  does  a  pious  minister  good  to 
see  a  saint  on  the  borders  of  the  promised 
land,  and  to  hear  the  soul's  testimony  to 
the  truth  of  the  doctrines  he  has  beeu 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  245 


teaching."  They  had  a  solemn  and  a 
blessed  time ;  it  was  good  to  be  there. 

"When  the  good  pastor  was  gone,  Mrs. 
Hartman  said  to  Regina,  "  Now,  my  dear 
daughter,  I  am  prepared  to  depart  in  peace. 
I  desire  to  be  absent  from  the  body  and  to 
be  present  with  the  Lord.  I  have  given  up 
all;  and  I  am  now  ready  to  depart." 

Regina  wept.  How  could  she  part  with 
her  mother? — that  dear,  affectionate  mo- 
ther, who  had  done  so  much  for  her.  Yet 
she  knew  it  was  her  duty  to  submit. 
She  made  up  her  mind,  therefore,  to  sub- 
mit to  the  will  of  her  heavenly  Father. 

Soon  after,  Mrs.  Hartman  began  to  sink. 
Her  strength  wras  gone,  and  she  felt  that 
death  was  coming  on  rapidly.  But  as  she 
approached  the  dark  waters  of  the  Jordan 
of  death,  her  faith  became  stronger  and  her 
hope  brighter.  Her  religion  sustained  her 
in  every  trial  and  did  not  forsake  her  in  a 
dying  hour. 

Before  she  became  insensible,  she  had  all 
the  family  called  around  her  dying  bed, 
and  exhorted  them  to  love  and  serve  God 
and  to  promise  to  meet  her  in  heaven.  It 

21* 


REG ix a:  or. 


was  solemn  and  affecting  to  hoar  her  ex- 
hortations. The  whole  family  was  deeply 
affected,  and  many  tears  wore  shed.  God 
was  there.  The  impressions  then  made 
upon  the  hearts  of  all  present  were  not 
soon  forgotten  !  There  was  deep  silence  in 
the  humble  cottage.  Mrs.  Ilartman  was 
dying:  but  her  faith  was  strong  in  the 
Lord,  and  the  grim  monster,  death,  was 
changed  into  a  messenger  of  peace.  Mrs. 
Ilartman  had  thought  so  much  of  death, 
and  lived  in  such  a  state  of  preparation 
for  this  solemn  event,  that  she  felt  calm 
and  resigned.  Like  Arndt.  from  whose 
writings  she  had  learned  so  much,  she 
made  many  preparations  of  which  most  per- 
sous  never  think. 

I:  is  said  that  Arndt  preached  his  own 
funeral   sermon   from   Ps.  exxvi.  5.  6 : — 

They  that  sow  in  tears  shall  reap  in  joy. 
lie  that  goeth  forth  and  weepeth.  bearing 
precious  seed,  shall  doubtless  come  again 
with  rejoicing,  bringing  his  sheaves  with 
him."  This  sermon  was  preached  at  Zell, 
on  the  30th  of  May.  16-1.  Wlien  he  came 
out  of  the  church,  he  remarked  to  his  ex- 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  247 

cellent  wife,  "  I  have  now  preached  my 
own  funeral  sermon."  It  was  so;  for,  soon 
after  he  took  sick  and  died. 

Mrs.  Hartman  selected  her  own  funeral 
text ;  also  the  clothes  she  wished  to  be  bu- 
ried in;  gave  directions  about  her  funeral, 
and  then  committed  her  soul  into  the  hands 
of  her  merciful  Savior.  To  die  was  to  her 
the  most  pleasant  part  of  her  life.  God  her 
Savior  was  with  her,  and,  while  others  were 
weeping,  she  alone  was  calm  and  happy. 

God,  in  his  mercy,  made  her  passage  to 
the  grave  light  and  easy.  She  died  with- 
out a  struggle  or  a  groan.  So  calm  and 
tranquil  was  her  end,  that  those  who  stood 
around  her  dying  bed  did  not  know  for 
some  time  that  her  pure,  blood-washed 
spirit  had  taken  its  flight  to  the  bosom  of 
her  Savior. 

"If  this  be  dying,"  exclaimed  a  neighbor- 
B  woman,  "  then  4  let  me  die  the  death  of  the 
righteous,  and  let  my  last  end  be  like  his.'  " 

Eegina  was  deeply  affected.  She  longed 
for  the  hour  of  her  own  departure.  But 
she  did  not  murmur.  God  had  done  it; 
and  she  felt  it  her  duty  to  submit  to  his 


248 


regixa;  or, 


will.  When  the  funeral  was  over,  the 
house  seemed  very  gloomy.  Even  the 
little  children  trod  softly  for  some  days. 
Christian  and  Susan  became  more  earnest 
in  their  religion ;  and  this  visitation  of 
God's  providence  was  greatly  blessed  to  the 
whole  family.  All  laid  the  death  of  the 
beloved  mother  to  heart.  She  was  faithful 
in  life  and  beloved  in  death. 

In  looking  back  upon  the  life  of  Mrs. 
Hartman,  we  find  a  rare  example  of  piety 
and  good  sense,  and  warm  devotion  to  her 
family.  "We  see  her,  indeed,  in  humble 
and  lowly  circumstances,  but  true  to  her 
duty  both  as  a  wife  and  a  mother.  It  is 
delightful  to  trace  the  workings  of  the 
mighty  grace  of  God  in  such  a  heart,  and 
to  see  religion  in  such  a  simple  form. 
With  little  mental  culture,  and  less  worldly 
refinement,  we  have  all  the  pure  and  ele- 
vated piety  of  the  most  accomplished  Chris- 
tian. Look  at  her  pure  affection  and  un- 
dying love  for  her  lost  daughter;  look,  too, 
at  her  more  than  Spartan  heroism  in  trying 
to  recover  her  lost  child!  But  she  is  gone; 
her  record  is  on  high. 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  249 


CHAPTER  XV. 

REGINA — HER  CHARACTER  —  HER  PIETY — HER 
END. 

Regina  felt  lonesome  for  some  time  after 
the  death  of  her  mother;  but  her  strong 
confidence  in  God  enabled  her  to  be  recon- 
ciled to  her  affliction.  She  remained  with 
her  brother  Christian,  and  spent  her  time 
in  reading  and  prayer  and  making  herself 
useful  in  the  family. 

Arndt's  "True  Christianity"  was,  next  to 
the  Bible,  her  best  companion.  She  loved 
to  read  it,  and  also  to  meditate  upon  what 
she  read.  She  found  it  an  inexhaustible 
source  of  comfort  and  consolation. 

She  went  to  church  as  often  as  she  could, 
wThich,  during  the  summer,  w7as  once  a 
month;  for  the  pastor  (Rev.  E.  Schultz) 
only  preached  once  every  four  wTeeks  in  Tul- 
pehocken. 

Regina  became  quite  an  intelligent  Chris- 
tian for  the  opportunities  she  had.  She 


KEG IX A  :  OK, 


was  much  respected  by  all  who  knew  her; 
but  always — even  when  she  was  quire  au 
old  woman — was  called  -  the  Indian  maid." 

She  paid  great  attention  to  the  religious 
education  of  Susan's  children.  She  often 
talked  with  them  of  the  Savior,  and  pointed 
out  to  them  the  way  of  salvation. 

She  was  habitually  grave  and  serious, 
but  not  melancholy  and  morose.  She  used 
to  say.  She  could  not  see  why  Christians 
should  not  be  cheerful  and  happy."'  She 
had  made  her  peace  with  God.  She  was 
washed  in  the  blood  of  Christ,  and,  through 
him,  she  had  a  hope  of  heaven :  aud  she 
knew  he  was  all-powerful  and  could  keep 
that  which  was  committed  into  his  hands. 

She  saw  little  company,  and  cared  but 
little  about  the  things  of  this  world, 
which  all  perish  in  their  using.  There 
were  only  a  few  tamilies  that  she  ever 
visited.  One  of  them  was  a  house  about 
four  miles  from  where  she  lived  ;  and  in 
that  house  there  was  a  pious  old  German 
woman,  who  was  much  afflicted.  She 
had  spinal  disease,  and  was  confined  to 
her  bed  for  many  years.    Regina  used  to 


TRUE  PIETY  AMONG  THE  LOWLY.  251 

visit  her  once  a  week  and  converse  with 
her;  and  she  always  took  Arndt's  "True 
Christianity"  along  and  read  a  chapter  or 
two  for  her  edification.  In  this  way  she  did 
good  to  all  she  could.  She  loved  to  visit 
the  sick ;  it  was  part  of  her  religion,  and  it 
was  also  good  for  her  own  soul.  Thus  she 
spent  her  time,  in  the  service  of  her  God 
and  Savior,  until  she  became  old ;  and  died 
at  a  good  old  age,  with  strong  confidence 
in  the  Lord. 

She  was  buried  by  the  side  of  her  mo- 
ther; and,  though  no  monument  marks 
the  spot  where  she  lies,  the  angels  watch 
over  her  sleeping  dust.  Her  record  is  on 
high;  and  her  soul  dwells  with  that 
blessed  Savior  wTho  loved  her  and  bought 
her  with  his  own  blood,  who  watched 
over  her  when  she  was  among  the  wild 
Indians,  and  who  brought  her  back  to  her 
mother,  and  at  last  sanctified  her  with  his 
own  precious  blood,  and  fitted  her  for  a  seat 
of  glory  at  his  right  hand  in  heaven. 

Thus  we  see  what  the  grace  of  God 
can  do.  How  wonderful  are  God's  ways ! 
Verily,  he  "  is  no  respecter  of  persons," 


252         regixa;  or,  true  piety. 

but  will  hear  all  those  of  every  nation  who 
will  call  upon  his  holy  name. 

We  are  now  done  with  the  history  of 
Regina.  And  we  would  ask  the  dear 
children  who  read  this  narrative,  to  take 
Regina  for  a  pattern.  See  how  faithful  she 
was.  She  used  her  talent  well.  She  had 
not  half  the  opportunities  which  many  of 
you  have,  and  yet  she  found  her  way  to  the 
feet  of  her  Redeemer.  See,  too,  what  good 
use  she  made  of  the  little  knowledge  she 
had  of  the  Lord.  She  never  saw  a  Sab- 
bath-school, nor  ever  had  the  advantages 
of  a  library.  Make  good  use  of  your 
time ;  learn  all  you  can  while  you  are 
young,  and  it  will  serve  you  perhaps  in  old 
age;  or  if,  like  poor  Regina,  you  should 
meet  with  misfortunes,  you  will  have  a 
real  treasure  to  fall  back  upon.  The  same 
blessed  Savior  who  followed  Regina  among 
the  savage  Indians,  and  who  watched  over 
her,  is  also  your  Savior,  and  is  following 
you,  and  watching  over  you  to  make  you 
happy.  Shall  he  seek  you  in  vain?  Oh, 
no ;  let  every  one  determine  that  he  or  she 
will  also  seek  the  Lord.  May  God  bless 
this  little  book  to  your  soul's  good  ! 


